Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) Short Interest Up 52.8% in November

Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) was the target of a large increase in short interest during the month of November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 94,540,000 shares, an increase of 52.8% from the October 31st total of 61,870,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 37,730,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.5 days.

Insider Activity at Pfizer

In related news, Director Scott Gottlieb bought 1,000 shares of Pfizer stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $28.24 per share, for a total transaction of $28,240.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $282,400. The trade was a 11.11 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.06% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Pfizer

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Olistico Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Pfizer in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Pfizer during the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. Gladius Capital Management LP boosted its position in Pfizer by 102.8% during the 3rd quarter. Gladius Capital Management LP now owns 1,043 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 38,015 shares during the period. Quarry LP bought a new stake in Pfizer in the 2nd quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Financial Connections Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Pfizer in the second quarter valued at about $34,000. 68.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Pfizer Price Performance

Pfizer stock traded up $0.38 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $26.21. 22,023,019 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 38,433,195. The company has a market cap of $148.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.42, a PEG ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 1.00. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $27.83 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $28.49. Pfizer has a 52-week low of $24.48 and a 52-week high of $31.54.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.06 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.42. Pfizer had a net margin of 7.07% and a return on equity of 16.28%. The company had revenue of $17.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.92 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned ($0.17) earnings per share. Pfizer’s revenue for the quarter was up 31.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Pfizer will post 2.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Pfizer Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th will be given a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.41%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. Pfizer’s payout ratio is currently 227.03%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PFE has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Pfizer in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $32.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Pfizer from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Daiwa Capital Markets upgraded shares of Pfizer from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $28.00 to $34.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Evercore ISI raised shares of Pfizer to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Daiwa America raised Pfizer from a “moderate buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $32.92.

Pfizer Company Profile

Pfizer Inc discovers, develops, manufactures, markets, distributes, and sells biopharmaceutical products in the United States, Europe, and internationally. The company offers medicines and vaccines in various therapeutic areas, including cardiovascular metabolic, migraine, and women's health under the Eliquis, Nurtec ODT/Vydura, Zavzpret, and the Premarin family brands; infectious diseases with unmet medical needs under the Prevnar family, Abrysvo, Nimenrix, FSME/IMMUN-TicoVac, and Trumenba brands; and COVID-19 prevention and treatment, and potential future mRNA and antiviral products under the Comirnaty and Paxlovid brands.