Erste Group Bank Forecasts Weaker Earnings for Pfizer

17 Jul 2026, 11:58 by Danessa Lincoln · The Markets Daily

Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE – Free Report) – Equities researchers at Erste Group Bank reduced their FY2026 earnings per share estimates for shares of Pfizer in a research note issued on Wednesday, July 15th. Erste Group Bank analyst H. Engel now forecasts that the biopharmaceutical company will post earnings of $2.92 per share for the year, down from their previous forecast of $2.95. The consensus estimate for Pfizer’s current full-year earnings is $2.96 per share.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $27.00 target price on shares of Pfizer in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Wolfe Research restated an “underperform” rating and set a $26.00 price target on shares of Pfizer in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Bank of America dropped their price target on shares of Pfizer from $27.00 to $26.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Pfizer from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, April 10th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on Pfizer from $34.00 to $30.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $28.50.

Read Our Latest Stock Report on Pfizer

Pfizer Stock Performance

Shares of PFE opened at $25.13 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $25.22 and its 200 day moving average price is $26.18. Pfizer has a 52 week low of $23.11 and a 52 week high of $28.75. The company has a market capitalization of $143.24 billion, a PE ratio of 19.19 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 1.25.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE – Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.75 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.72 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $14.45 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.84 billion. Pfizer had a return on equity of 19.44% and a net margin of 11.83%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.92 EPS. Pfizer has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.800-3.000 EPS.

Pfizer Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 24th will be given a $0.43 dividend. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 24th. Pfizer’s payout ratio is currently 131.30%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Pfizer

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Penn Davis Mcfarland Inc. grew its holdings in Pfizer by 50.9% in the 4th quarter. Penn Davis Mcfarland Inc. now owns 171,332 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $4,266,000 after buying an additional 57,777 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Pfizer by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 541,346,182 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $13,479,520,000 after buying an additional 7,031,162 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in shares of Pfizer by 8.3% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 9,193,713 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $228,924,000 after buying an additional 706,426 shares during the last quarter. Pensionfund Sabic bought a new stake in shares of Pfizer in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,863,000. Finally, North Dakota State Investment Board acquired a new stake in shares of Pfizer in the fourth quarter worth $5,348,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.36% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Pfizer

Here are the key news stories impacting Pfizer this week:

Positive Sentiment: Pfizer received a fresh boost from news that PADCEV plus Keytruda won FDA approval for use in muscle-invasive bladder cancer, which supports the company’s oncology growth narrative. Pfizer (PFE) Announces FDA Approval of PADCEV plus Keytruda in MIBC
Positive Sentiment: Several articles argued that Pfizer stock may be fairly valued or offer a potential buying opportunity, citing a relatively low valuation, dividend yield, and upside tied to pipeline execution and acquisitions. Pfizer (PFE) Stock Looks Fairly Priced With Pipeline Risks In View
Neutral Sentiment: Analysts noted Pfizer is trading below its 50-day and 200-day moving averages, reflecting a cautious technical setup as investors balance fading COVID-related revenue against longer-term pipeline growth. Pfizer Stock Below 50-Day and 200-Day SMA: Buy the Dip or Exit Now?
Neutral Sentiment: Pfizer also suspended sales of Premarin vaginal cream in India because of supply challenges, a development that looks more like an operational hiccup than a major earnings driver. Pfizer suspends sales of Premarin vaginal cream in India, citing supply challenges
Negative Sentiment: Arbutus Biopharma escalated patent litigation against Pfizer and BioNTech, filing international lawsuits over lipid nanoparticle technology and seeking damages and injunctions. That adds legal overhang and could raise long-term costs or uncertainty for Pfizer. ABUS Stock On Track For Best Day In About Two Months — What’s The Moderna Connection?

Pfizer Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

Pfizer Inc (NYSE: PFE) is a multinational biopharmaceutical company headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1849 by Charles Pfizer and Charles Erhart, the company researches, develops, manufactures and commercializes a broad range of medicines and vaccines for human health. Its activities span discovery research, clinical development, regulatory affairs, manufacturing and global commercial distribution across multiple therapeutic areas.