Pfizer (PFE)
Health Care · $167B market cap · SEC CIK 0000078003
ahead of 18% of the S&P 500 · #49 of 59 in Health Care
Next reports on Feb 1, 2027, after the close, with analysts expecting $0.70 in earnings per share.
52-week range $23.62 to $31.44. 7% below its 52-week high and 24% above its low.
The case for PFE
- Gross margin of 75% absorbs cost shocks.
- Moves less than the market (beta 0.27).
The case against
- Expensive for its growth: 41.3× earnings, where 2% a year of growth would justify about 11×.
- Earnings per share down 59.4%.
- Long-term debt of $61.6B would take 5 years of operating cash flow to repay.
- Return on equity of only 5%.
- Revenue grew only 1.3%, roughly the pace of inflation.
What the score is made of
Each factor is half a curve over reported figures and half a rank among the other Health Care companies (momentum is judged against fixed thresholds only), and the five are blended by weight. The score is where that blend places it in the S&P 500. It describes the last filing and the current price. It is not a forecast.
| Valuewhat you pay for the earnings and cash, against the growth you get | 24 |
|---|---|
| Growthhow fast revenue and earnings are moving, this year and over five | 25 |
| Profitabilityhow much of the revenue becomes profit, and how much of that is cash | 43 |
| Momentumhow the price has behaved lately | 71 |
| Stabilityhow violently it moves, what it owes and what it pays you | 60 |
- Its dividend figures disagree with each other (a 5.4% yield against about 2.0% implied by its payout ratio and P/E), so the dividend is not counted.
- Each factor except momentum is half fixed thresholds, half rank among the 59 Health Care companies.
The financials
Revenue growth
Is the business growing? Slowly
| Last 12 months | +1.3% |
|---|---|
| Over 5 years | +8.5% a year |
| FY2025 revenue | $62.6B (−2%) |
Free cash flow
Is it generating real cash? Yes
| FY2025 free cash flow | $9.1B |
|---|---|
| Of revenue | 15% |
| Of profit | 117% |
Profit margins
Is profitability improving? No, slipping
| Gross margin | 75% |
|---|---|
| Operating margin | 7% |
| Net margin, FY24 → FY25 → now | 12.6% → 12.4% → 6.3% |
Debt vs. cash
Is the balance sheet healthy? Stretched
| Cash | $1.1B |
|---|---|
| Long-term debt | $61.6B |
| Net debt | $60.5B |
| Years to repay | 5.3 yrs |
Valuation
Is the stock price reasonable? No, expensive
| P/E | 41.3× |
|---|---|
| Fair P/E for its growth | 11× |
| P/FCF | 18.4× |
| Forward P/E | 10.5× |
| EV / EBITDA | 24.2× |
At 41.3× earnings it trades well above the 11× that 2% a year of growth would justify. At 18.4× free cash flow it trades well above that same mark.
The financials, five years deep
Pulled from Pfizer's XBRL filings on SEC EDGAR. Italic rows are worked out from the others.
| FY2025 | FY2024 | FY2023 | FY2022 | FY2021 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue growth | |||||
| Revenue | $62.6B | $63.6B | $59.6B | $101B | $81.3B |
| Change on the year | −2% | +7% | −41% | +24% | — |
| Free cash flow | |||||
| Free cash flow | $9.1B | $9.8B | $4.8B | $26.0B | $29.9B |
| Of revenue | 15% | 15% | 8% | 26% | 37% |
| Profit margins | |||||
| Net margin | 12.4% | 12.6% | 3.6% | 31.0% | 27.0% |
| Debt vs. cash | |||||
| Cash | $1.1B | $1.0B | $2.9B | $416M | $1.9B |
| Long-term debt | $61.6B | $57.4B | $61.5B | $32.9B | $36.2B |
| Net cash (debt) | −$60.5B | −$56.4B | −$58.7B | −$32.5B | −$34.3B |
What Pfizer says it does
— Patents and Other Intellectual Property Rights section for information regarding the expiration of various patent rights, Note 16 for a discussion of recent developments concerning patent and product litigation relating to certain of the products discussed above and Note 17C for the primary indications or class of the selected products discussed above. Costs and Expenses Costs and expenses follow: Year Ended December 31, % Change (MILLIONS) 2025 2024 2023 25/24 24/23 Cost of sales $ 16,067 $ 17,851 $ 24,954 (10) (28) Percentage of Total revenues 25.7 % 28.1 % 41.9 % Selling, informational and administrative expenses 13,794 14,730 14,771 (6) — Research and development expenses 10,437 10,822 10,679 (4) 1 Acquired in-process research and development expenses 1,613 108 194 * (44) Amortization of intangible assets 4,874 5,286 4,733 (8) 12 Restructuring charges and certain acquisition-related costs 1,550 2,419 2,943 (36) (18) Other…