Pfizer Inc - Stocks

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The Healthcare industry is very important and crucial as it involves the development and delivery of medicines and other wide range of healthcare products that help in the treatment of numerous diseases and improve the quality of life. The pharmaceutical industry is a vital part of the healthcare system that is engaged in discovering and developing new and better medicines that can help in accurate diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of diseases.

Pfizer is one of the world’s largest and most prominent American pharmaceutical companies. The core business of Pfizer is to discover, test, develop, market, and distribute a wide assortment of medicines and vaccines for numerous medical segments such as cardiology, immunology, oncology, neurology, and endocrinology. Some of the Pfizer’s products that are renowned across the world are Advil, Celebrex, Lipitor, Xanax, Diflucan, Lyrica, Viagra, and Zoloft. Apart from medicinal products, Pfizer has also given famous consumer products such as Chapstick and Preparation-H.

Pfizer is based in New York, and it has a research facility in Groton, Connecticut. Pfizer operates in more than 180 countries and has almost 88,300 employees. The company was the second-biggest pharmaceutical brand in 2017 and was also ranked 57 by Fortune 500 in 2018 among the biggest US companies according to total revenue.

Pfizer has achieved numerous triumphs and recognition over the years. Pfizer mass produces penicillin, and it also discovered the citric acid. Pfizer is the world’s top supplier of Vitamin C. Apart from various locations across the US, Pfizer does research and development in different parts of the world, which includes Australia, Japan, Europe, and South America.

History of Pfizer

Two German American cousins named Charles Erhart and Charles Pfizer founded Charles Pfizer Company in 1849 in Brooklyn, New York. The initial business of the company was producing fine chemicals, and it was in located one building that served as a laboratory, factory, warehouse, and office. As the business grew, Pfizer moved its office to Manhattan in 1868, and a warehouse was opened in Chicago in 1882.

The first successful product of Pfizer was ‘Santonin,’ which was used to treat intestinal worms. In 1900, Charles Pfizer Company was incorporated in New Jersey. In 1942, Pfizer started to trade publicly. In 1944 Pfizer started to produce penicillin on a large scale. In 1950, Pfizer introduced Terramycin, which was an antibiotic tablet.

In 1970, Charles Pfizer Company was renamed to Pfizer Inc. In 1989, Pfizer launched the Procardia XL. In 1992, Pfizer introduced three of its most popular products, which were Zoloft, Zithromax, and Norvasc. In 1995, the animal health unit of SmithKline Beecham was acquired by Pfizer. In 1997, Pfizer launched the successful Lipitor medicine in collaboration with Warner-Lambert. In 1998, Pfizer introduces Viagra, and also sold its Medical Technology Group. In 1999, Pfizer started marketing Celebrex.

Pfizer has made numerous key acquisitions over the years to strengthen its business, some of the notable ones are

• Warner-Lambert in 2000
• Pharmacia in 2003
• Wyeth in 2009

In 2016, Pfizer was said to merge with Ireland based group called ‘Allergan’ for a deal worth $160 billion, but it was called off in April 2016 due to new rules from the US Treasury Department that said that a company could not merge with another foreign company to avoid payment of taxes.

In 2019, Pfizer did a joint venture of its consumer healthcare unit with GlaxoSmithKline, which is a renowned British pharmaceutical company. According to the deal, Pfizer has a 32% stake in the joint venture, while GlaxoSmithKline has a 68% stake.

Pfizer was part of the famous Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) Index from 2004 to 2020 but will be replaced by Amgen from August 31, 2020. In the global economic recession of 2008, Pfizer’s share price fell to $12.30, but since then, Pfizer’s stock value has remained stable and even saw quite high values and touched $39 in January 2018.

Current Business and Investment of Pfizer

Pfizer is known for its discovery, development, marketing, and distribution of a wide range of health products that include medicines, vaccines, and other consumer products. The products made by Pfizer are used across wide medical categories that include oncology, immunology, cardiovascular, metabolic issues, neurology, rare diseases, and psychiatric issues.

Pfizer operates in two segments that are Pfizer Innovative Health and Pfizer Essential Health.

• Pfizer Innovative Health is engaged in the development and delivery of medicines and vaccines for different segments such as immunology, oncology, internal medicine, inflammation, rare diseases, and consumer healthcare.
• Pfizer Essential Health is involved in the growth and supply of generic sterile injectable products, generics, anti-infectives, and biosimilars.

Some of the Pfizer popular healthcare products and their function are

• Advil: Anti-inflammatory drug
• Xanax: Treat anxiety and panic disorders
• Lipitor: Lower cholesterol and risk of heart attack and stroke.
• Viagra: Used for erectile dysfunction
• Zoloft: Used for lowering anxiety, fear, and panic attacks
• Celebrex: Relieves swelling, inflammation, stiffness for those having arthritis
• Zithromax: Treating bacterial infections
• Nexium 24HR: For relieving heartburn, and persistent cough

The Coronavirus pandemic has gripped the world, and Pfizer has been one the leading pharmaceutical company is working tirelessly to develop the Covid-19 vaccine. Pfizer has an agreement with the US government to sell 100 million doses to the country and sell almost 600 million doses to different countries that have been badly affected by the Coronavirus. The US government would pay $1.95 billion for the 100 million doses.

On March 17, 2020, Pfizer teamed up with German company ‘BioNTech’ to work together in developing and distributing an mRNA based vaccine that could stop the Covid-19 infections. The development is going on, but experts suggest that it would take another 18 months or 2 years for complete clinical development of the vaccine. However, both Pfizer and BioNTech have said to supply millions of vaccine doses by the end of 2020 as prior estimates of 2 years have been revised to one year.

Risk and Potential in Pfizer Environment

Pfizer posted revenue of $51.75 billion in the fiscal year 2019. The operating income of Pfizer is 2019 was $16.30 billion, net income was $16.27 billion, and total assets were $167.489 billion. Pfizer is 171 years old, which makes it one of the oldest companies, and it has a wide portfolio of medicines and vaccines along with other consumer health products. SWOT analysis is a popular management tool that allows big corporations such as Pfizer to evaluate their performance and take necessary steps to enable future growth and success. The SWOT analysis of Pfizer is given as

• Strengths:

Pfizer is a global brand and one of the biggest pharmaceutical company. Pfizer has a broad range of effective medicines and vaccines for numerous medical diseases and infections. The company focuses heavily on the discovery and development of new medicines that can improve treatment and have no or little side effects. Pfizer has a global reach, and its healthcare products are distributed in over 180 countries.

• Weaknesses:

Pfizer has, on many occasions, face numerous legal troubles and criticism due to its products. Consumers have many times alleged Pfizer for supplying defective products, and the US government also charged a penalty to the company. Apart from lawsuits, many times, Pfizer had to order product recalls due to quality issues and side effects.

• Opportunities

Pfizer can easily strengthen its position in the pharma industry by making key strategic alliances that can help to improve the research and development of better healthcare products. Pfizer can increase awareness about healthcare needs, particularly in developing countries. There is a constant demand for quality and affordable medicine and vaccines, which Pfizer can easily avail. Pfizer can also diversify its portfolio and reach out to remote and rural areas of the world.

• Threats

Pfizer faces quite a tough challenge from competitors in the pharmaceutical industry. The company also has to comply with strict drug regulations and other government policies. The economic downturns and currency rate fluctuations also impact the financial health of Pfizer. The cheap substitutes cause a reduction in sales of Pfizer healthcare products. The competitors of Pfizer include Abbot Laboratories, Novartis, Merck, Sun Pharma Industries, Roche Holdings, Amgen, AstraZeneca, and Johnson & Johnson.

Stock Analysis of Pfizer

Pfizer is listed and actively trades on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) with the ticker symbols ‘PFE.’ The company is listed under the ‘Health Technology’ Sector, and the industry is ‘Pharmaceuticals: Major.’ Pfizer is also a member of other indices such as the S&P-100 Index and S&P-500 Index. Pfizer is also listed on the London Stock Exchange, SIX Swiss Exchange, and Euronext Exchange.

The all-time high share price of Pfizer was $50.03 on April 12, 1999, and the average price in the last 52 weeks is $36.57.

Amid the Coronavirus pandemic, Pfizer reduced up to 99% prices on some of its drugs and also increased prices on some of its medicines. The price of 36 drugs was lowered, and this was seen as a positive move by the local population and a gesture of goodwill. Pfizer has announced that it has detected the elements that could help to treat the Covid-19 virus.

Pfizer sales have been declining in every quarter for the last four quarters. The sales dropped 8% to $12.03 billion in the first quarter of 2020, and earnings have declined to 6% to 80 cents in the first quarter. In the second quarter, Pfizer reported revenue of $11.8 billion with a 9% operational decline. The diluted Earnings per Share (EPS) was $0.61, and Adjusted EPS was $0.78 per share.

The Coronavirus has led to the closure of businesses and manufacturing sites all over the world to prevent the virus from spreading further, but Pfizer’s production units have been able to work, and there has been no disruption in the company’s supply chain network. On the other hand, Pfizer has increased its operations to speed up the development of the Covid-19 vaccine.

The sales and marketing function of Pfizer was badly impacted by Coronavirus as the sales team could not properly meet with health professionals due to safety concerns regarding Coronavirus. Due to steady gains in financial assets, operating cash flows, and access to capital markets, Pfizer believes that it can easily maintain the liquidity needs for the future. The company will continue to work on developing a vaccine that could help people to regain health and prevent the Coronavirus.

The information above is for education purposes only and cannot be considered as investment advice. Past performance is not reliable indicator of future results.