Over the past five years, Pfizer’s (PFE) stock price has fallen by a cumulative 25%, while the S&P 500 index has risen 68% over the same period. As patents for its core drugs have gradually expired, uncertainty surrounding the company’s future growth prospects has increased, eroding investor confidence. Apart from its dividends, the market had for a time struggled to find compelling reasons to buy Pfizer stock.
Entering this year, risk aversion in the market has intensified, driving funds into high-dividend stocks. Pfizer, with its 6.4% dividend yield, has once again become a focus for investors. Its stock performance is quietly reversing, achieving a breakthrough not seen in years—outperforming the S&P 500 index.
Looking back at recent performance, Pfizer last outperformed the broader market in 2022. That year, the stock fell 13%, but because high inflation weighed on the overall market, the S&P 500 dropped 19%, giving Pfizer a relatively better showing. In 2023, Pfizer’s stock tumbled 44%, followed by an 8% decline in 2024, and another 6% drop in 2025. During the previous years when growth stocks dominated the market environment, doubts about the company’s prospects left it out of favor for an extended period.
This year, circumstances resemble those of 2022. A combination of factors, including economic concerns, rising commodity prices, and geopolitical conflicts, has prompted investors to seek defensive allocations. Pfizer, with its 6.4% dividend yield, has consequently regained favor.
Recently, the pharmaceutical giant released clinical trial results that further boosted market sentiment, driving the stock up about 3% in a single day. The market is now watching to see whether Pfizer can sustain a rebound after years of underperforming the broader market.
On March 17, Pfizer announced that its investigational candidate, atirmociclib, performed well in a Phase 2 clinical trial for patients with second-line metastatic breast cancer. When used in combination with fulvestrant (brand name Faslodex), another breast cancer therapy, the treatment significantly extended progression-free survival compared to fulvestrant alone or other combination regimens.
Notably, atirmociclib has a different mechanism of action from existing mainstream therapies in this area, and the Phase 2 results demonstrated promising efficacy with a manageable safety profile. However, it is important to note that the trial is still at an interim stage, and Pfizer needs to complete Phase 3 studies before it can potentially advance the drug to market. The company stated that overall survival data from the study is not yet mature and has not been released. Furthermore, while atirmociclib achieved positive results in the second-line setting, the company is more inclined to develop it for earlier lines of treatment, meaning the outcome is not entirely directly aligned with its future commercialization strategy. Nevertheless, for Pfizer, which urgently needs clinical and regulatory breakthroughs to revitalize its pipeline and improve its financial performance, the result still sends a positive signal.
So far this year, Pfizer has announced progress in several clinical trials, including two drugs not yet approved in the United States—atirmociclib and tilrekimig, a potential eczema treatment—as well as an expanded indication for its already approved cancer drug, Talzenna. Company management has disclosed that after launching 11 pivotal clinical trials in 2025, it plans to initiate approximately 20 more this year.
The company’s oncology pipeline and its investigational weight management drug will be key areas of focus. Over the next two years, more major clinical advancements could boost the stock price and gradually drive portfolio expansion as well as revenue and profit growth. On a valuation basis, Pfizer currently trades at a forward price-to-earnings ratio of 9.2 times, significantly below the healthcare sector average of 16.9 times, indicating a certain valuation advantage.
Analysts point out that the investment case for Pfizer stock stems not only from the positive Phase 2 clinical trial results but also from its deep pipeline and reasonable valuation levels, which are currently the more compelling key factors.
