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Why Pfizer (PFE) Outpaced the Stock Market Today

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In the latest trading session, Pfizer (PFE - Free Report) closed at $26.64, marking a +1.29% move from the previous day. The stock exceeded the S&P 500, which registered a gain of 0.88% for the day. Meanwhile, the Dow gained 1.24%, and the Nasdaq, a tech-heavy index, added 0.65%.

The drugmaker's shares have seen a decrease of 1.54% over the last month, not keeping up with the Medical sector's loss of 0.32% and the S&P 500's gain of 1.17%.

Market participants will be closely following the financial results of Pfizer in its upcoming release. The company plans to announce its earnings on February 4, 2025. The company's earnings per share (EPS) are projected to be $0.48, reflecting a 380% increase from the same quarter last year. Meanwhile, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for revenue is projecting net sales of $17.5 billion, up 22.8% from the year-ago period.

It's also important for investors to be aware of any recent modifications to analyst estimates for Pfizer. These revisions typically reflect the latest short-term business trends, which can change frequently. As a result, we can interpret positive estimate revisions as a good sign for the company's business outlook.

Based on our research, we believe these estimate revisions are directly related to near-team stock moves. Investors can capitalize on this by using the Zacks Rank. This model considers these estimate changes and provides a simple, actionable rating system.

The Zacks Rank system, which varies between #1 (Strong Buy) and #5 (Strong Sell), carries an impressive track record of exceeding expectations, confirmed by external audits, with stocks at #1 delivering an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Within the past 30 days, our consensus EPS projection has moved 0.34% higher. Pfizer is currently a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

In terms of valuation, Pfizer is presently being traded at a Forward P/E ratio of 8.98. This represents a discount compared to its industry's average Forward P/E of 12.73.

We can additionally observe that PFE currently boasts a PEG ratio of 0.63. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company's expected earnings growth rate. The Large Cap Pharmaceuticals was holding an average PEG ratio of 1.3 at yesterday's closing price.

The Large Cap Pharmaceuticals industry is part of the Medical sector. This industry currently has a Zacks Industry Rank of 187, which puts it in the bottom 26% of all 250+ industries.

The Zacks Industry Rank is ordered from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

Keep in mind to rely on Zacks.com to watch all these stock-impacting metrics, and more, in the succeeding trading sessions.


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