Pfizer shifts to post-pandemic growth

Article Excerpt

Pfizer’s shares are down 45% in the past year due to lower demand for its COVID-19 treatments as the pandemic eases. However, new products from its acquisition of Seagen and its high research spending, generally, should spur long-term growth and your dividends. PFIZER INC. $28 is a buy. The company (New York symbol PFE; Income-Growth Dividend Payer Portfolio, Manufacturing sector; Shares outstanding: 5.7 billion; Market cap: $159.6 billion; Dividend yield: 6.0%; Dividend Sustainability Rating: Highest; www.pfizer.com) is one of the world’s largest makers of prescription drugs. Its top-selling brands include Eliquis (stroke), Ibrance (breast cancer) and Prevnar (pneumonia). Pfizer will now raise your annual dividend rate by 2.4%. Starting with the March 2024 payment, investors will receive $0.42 a share instead of $0.41. The new annual rate of $1.68 yields a high 6.0%. The company has raised the annual dividend rate each year for the past 14 years. The company’s revenue fell 3.5%, from $53.65 billion in 2018 to $51.75 billion in 2019. That’s because Pfizer folded…