Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE)

The financial valuation ratios for the analyzed periods show varied trends that reflect changes in market perceptions and company performance.

Price to Earnings (P/E) Ratio

Initial data is unavailable before March 2020, after which the P/E ratio starts at 19.62 in April 2021 and decreases steadily until reaching a low of 7.44 by December 2022. Following this decline, a notable spike occurs in October 2023, reaching a peak of 73.42, then sharply declines again in the subsequent quarters, ending at 17.22 by March 2025. This volatility suggests fluctuating investor expectations or earnings variability during this timeframe.

Price to Operating Profit (P/OP) Ratio

Similar to the P/E ratio, the P/OP ratio shows a declining trend from April 2021 (23.12) to December 2022 (6.74), indicating increasing operating profit relative to price or declining price relative to operating profit. Subsequently, an abrupt rise to an extremely high level of 121.63 occurs in October 2023, followed by another sharp fall to 11.27 by March 2025. This pattern indicates considerable short-term fluctuations in operating profitability or market valuation.

Price to Sales (P/S) Ratio

The P/S ratio shows a gradual and steady decline from 4.5 in April 2021 to 2.17 by March 2025. This consistent downward trend implies that the company’s market valuation has declined relative to its sales over the period, potentially reflecting changes in sales growth, margins, or investor sentiment about growth prospects.

Price to Book Value (P/BV) Ratio

The P/BV ratio starts relatively higher at 3.16 in March 2020, fluctuates around 3 to 3.78 during 2020 to mid-2021, and then steadily decreases to 1.5 by March 2025. This decline shows the market value moving closer to the book value of equity, which may indicate a reassessment of asset values or expectations of future profitability.

Overall, the observed data suggests a period of declining valuation multiples from early 2021 to late 2022, followed by significant short-term volatility in earnings and operating profit multiples towards late 2023. Simultaneously, valuation relative to sales and book value depicts a more gradual decline, suggesting a cautious market outlook with periodic reassessments of growth and profit expectations.

Share Price

The share price exhibited notable volatility over the observed periods. Initially, there was a decline from $36.96 in March 2020 to $33.82 by December 2020, followed by a significant upward trend reaching a peak of $49.95 in July 2022. Subsequent months saw a gradual decline, falling to $23.87 by March 2025. This represents a substantial decrease from the mid-2022 peak, indicating potential market concerns or changes in investor sentiment over the later periods.

Earnings Per Share (EPS)

EPS data begins from April 2021 with a value of $1.72 and shows a steady increase until peaking at $5.58 in April 2023. Following this peak, EPS declined sharply, reaching a negative value of -$0.46 in September 2024, signaling a loss during that quarter. Afterwards, there is a recovery trend with positive EPS of $1.42 registered in December 2024, and stabilizing near $1.39 by March 2025. The trend suggests significant fluctuations in profitability with a peak followed by a downturn and partial recovery.

Price-to-Earnings (P/E) Ratio

The P/E ratio reflects the changes in earnings and share price valuation. Starting around 19.6 in April 2021, the ratio steadily declined to a low of 7.44 in July 2023, indicating increasing earnings relative to share price during that time. However, a sharp increase to 73.42 in October 2023 corresponds with the plunge in EPS, which likely caused this surge due to diminished earnings. The ratio subsequently normalized somewhat to 18.42 in March 2025, consistent with the EPS recovery.

Overall Insights

The company experienced considerable volatility in key financial metrics over the analyzed quarters. Share price and EPS both showed strong growth phases followed by periods of decline. The spike and subsequent normalization in the P/E ratio highlight the impact of earnings fluctuations on market valuation. The negative EPS quarter indicates operational challenges or one-off impacts during that time. The partial EPS recovery and stabilization of P/E ratio towards the end suggest the company may be addressing these challenges and improving profitability.

The analyzed financial data reveals a variable trend in share price, operating profit per share, and the price-to-operating profit ratio over the time periods presented.

Share Price (US$)

The share price experienced moderate fluctuations from March 2020 through December 2021, initially rising from $36.96 to a peak around $49.73 in October 2021. Subsequently, a downward trend is observed beginning in late 2021 and continuing through March 2025, with the share price decreasing to $23.87 by March 2025. This pattern suggests a peak during the mid-2021 to late 2021 period, followed by a sustained decline over the subsequent years.

Operating Profit Per Share (US$)

Operating profit per share data is unavailable before April 2021 but shows a rising trend from $1.46 in that quarter, reaching a high of $6.22 by December 2022. From that peak, the profit per share declines sharply through 2023 and early 2024, hitting negative values in the quarters ending September and December 2024 (-$0.42 and -$1.02 respectively). Thereafter, a rebound is observed, with the figure recovering to $2.12 by March 2025. This pattern indicates strong operational performance improvements followed by substantial volatility and operational challenges before partial recovery.

Price-to-Operating Profit Ratio (P/OP)

The P/OP ratio is initially high, at 23.12 in April 2021, then declines steadily in line with rising operating profits and relatively stable share price, reaching a low of 6.74 by October 2023. The ratio spikes dramatically to 17.49 in December 2023 and 121.63 in March 2024, coinciding with the sharp drop and negative operating profits, reflecting increased valuation risk or market uncertainty. Subsequently, the ratio normalizes again, declining to approximately 11.27 by March 2025, consistent with improved profit performance and stabilizing share price.

In summary, the data indicates a period of operational growth and share price appreciation up to late 2021, followed by a decline in both profitability and stock price through 2023 and early 2024. The significant volatility in operating profit per share and the corresponding P/OP ratio suggest challenges impacting earnings during this later timeframe, with early 2025 data reflecting a tentative recovery in operating results and valuation metrics.

The share price exhibited notable fluctuations over the reported periods. Initially, the price experienced an increase from approximately $33.82 at the end of 2020 to a peak near $49.95 in mid-2022. Following this peak, there was a consistent downward trend, with the price declining to $23.87 by the end of the first quarter of 2025.

Sales per share demonstrated a generally upward trajectory from early 2021, increasing from $7.51 to a peak of approximately $18.05 in the fourth quarter of 2022. However, after this peak, sales per share declined steadily until early 2024, reaching a low of $9.87, followed by slight variability and a modest recovery to around $10.99 by the first quarter of 2025.

The Price-to-Sales (P/S) ratio started at a high level of 4.5 in early 2021 and showed a downward trend over time, decreasing to approximately 2.17 by the first quarter of 2025. This decline signifies a relative decrease in market valuation compared to sales, particularly notable given the decline in share price outpacing the sales per share reduction in later periods.

Overall, the data indicate that while sales per share experienced growth initially, reaching a peak in late 2022, the subsequent decline in both sales and share price led to a reduced P/S ratio. The market appeared to price in less optimism towards the company’s sales performance over time, with share price declines being more pronounced than sales decreases in the latter periods.

Share Price Trend

Increase from early 2021 to mid-2022; consistent decline thereafter through early 2025.

Sales per Share Trend

Steady increase until late 2022 peak; followed by a decline and modest recovery through early 2025.

P/S Ratio Trend

Gradual decrease over the period, indicating a reduction in valuation multiples despite sales changes.

Relationship Between Metrics

Share price decline outpaced sales decline in latter periods, contributing to P/S ratio reduction.

Share Price

The share price exhibited a fluctuating pattern over the analyzed periods. Starting at $36.96 in March 2020, it experienced a modest increase reaching a peak of $49.73 in October 2021. Following this high, the share price demonstrated a general downward trend, decreasing substantially to $23.87 by March 2025. The decline after late 2021 appears steady, indicating potential market or company-specific challenges impacting investor valuation.

Book Value per Share (BVPS)

The book value per share generally trended upward over the full duration. Beginning at $11.71 in March 2020, BVPS rose consistently with minor fluctuations, peaking at around $17.89 in April 2023. Subsequently, it experienced a slight decrease but maintained values above $15.00 into early 2025. This progression suggests overall strengthening of the company's net asset base on a per share basis despite fluctuations in market perception reflected in the share price.

Price-to-Book Value Ratio (P/BV)

The P/BV ratio started relatively high at 3.16 in March 2020 and increased to its maximum of 3.78 in July 2021, coinciding with the share price peak. Subsequently, the ratio declined markedly, indicating that the share price decreased more rapidly than the book value per share increased. By March 2025, the P/BV ratio had dropped to 1.5, reflecting a reduced market premium on the company's net asset value and a less favorable valuation from the market perspective compared to earlier periods.