Pfizer management check
PFE · Health Care · Pharmaceuticals · CEO Bourla
Filings as of
5 good · 1 to watch · 1 flagged, across the seven questions below.
- Flag
Have owners done well?
Trailed its chosen peers$100 invested at the start of fiscal 2021 grew to $86, against $187 for the peer group the company picked itself.
- Good
Does pay follow performance?
Pay rose and fell with returnsOver 5 years, the CEO's pay actually paid (equity valued at the share price) had a correlation of 0.57 with shareholder return. 1 means pay moved in step; below 0, the opposite way.
- Good
What does the CEO cost owners?
0.4% of net income$27.6m of reported pay in fiscal 2025, against $7.8bn of net income.
- Good
Do they own the stock?
Insiders are buyingThe CEO holds 429,173 shares, directly or through trusts (unvested awards not counted): about 0.4 years of pay. 3 insiders bought $3.0m on the open market in the last six months, with their own money, near the lows. Sales: $135k.
- Watch
Are owners being diluted?
Share count growingDiluted shares changed +0.0% a year over the last three fiscal years. Stock-based pay was 1.3% of revenue in the latest year.
- Good
Is leadership stable?
6 leadership filings in 3 yearsCEO in the pay table: Bourla. 6 filings under 8-K item 5.02 (officers or directors leaving or joining, or new pay arrangements) in the last 3 years.
- Good
Are the books clean?
No red flags on fileNo restatements, auditor changes or late filings since 2021.
Against the S&P 500
Each check's score (0–100) and how it compares: the share of ranked S&P 500 companies it matches or beats, and the median in Health Care.
| Check | Score | At or above | Sector median |
|---|---|---|---|
| Owner returns | 0 | 26 | |
| Pay for performance | 78 | 85 | |
| CEO cost | 87 | 44 | |
| Skin in the game | 36 | 46 | |
| Dilution | 50 | 68 | |
| Stable leadership | 95 | 70 | |
| Clean books | 100 | 100 |
Closest peers
Others in Pharmaceuticals, by management score. Pfizer is 30th of 60 in its sector.
- 32LLYLilly (Eli)84
- 181ZTSZoetis70
- 190JNJJohnson & Johnson69
- 207BMYBristol Myers Squibb68
- 263PFEPfizer64
- 323MRKMerck & Co.60
- 369VTRSViatris57
Pay versus performance
From the proxy statement filed March 12, 2026. "Actually paid" values stock awards at the share price, so it rises and falls with the stock.
| Fiscal year | CEO | CEO pay | Actually paid | Other executives (avg) | $100 became | Peers | Net income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Bourla | $27.6m | $33.7m | $9.6m | $86 | $187 | $7.8bn |
| 2024 | Bourla | $24.6m | $38.5m | $8.5m | $86 | $151 | $8.0bn |
| 2023 | Bourla | $21.6m | −$62.1m | $6.3m | $88 | $143 | $2.1bn |
| 2022 | Bourla | $33.0m | $5.7m | $14.8m | $149 | $133 | $31.4bn |
| 2021 | Bourla | $24.4m | $115.2m | $9.3m | $167 | $123 | $22.0bn |
The board says pay is tied most to Adjusted Net Income. Its other key measures: Total Revenue, Adjusted Diluted EPS, Cash Flow from Operations.
Insiders and the CEO's stake
Albert Bourla (Chairman & CEO) held 429,173 shares directly after their latest Form 4 on Aug 12, 2026, roughly $11.3m at that filing's price.
3 insiders bought $3.0m on the open market in the last six months, with their own money, near the lows. Sales: $135k.
- BoughtAlbert BourlaChairman & CEO$1.0mAug 12, 2026
- BoughtRonald E BlaylockDirector$999kAug 5, 2026
- BoughtMortimer J BuckleyDirector$960kAug 5, 2026
- SoldJennifer B. DamicoSVP & Controller$135kAug 5, 2026
Leadership and governance on file
- Jun 18, 2026Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Oct 15, 2024Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Jul 26, 2024Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Jul 10, 2024Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Jul 1, 2024Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Dec 12, 2023Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Jul 27, 2023Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Apr 12, 2022Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Dec 15, 2021Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Nov 19, 2021Leadership change8-K 5.02
Latest shareholder vote results: Apr 27, 2026, including the say-on-pay vote.
Where the money went
Over 2021–2025: $2.0bn returned to owners in buybacks and dividends, 3% of net income, and $4.3bn of pay in stock.
| Fiscal year | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $73.6bn | $91.8bn | $50.9bn | $63.6bn | $62.6bn |
| Net income | $22.0bn | $31.4bn | $2.1bn | $8.0bn | $7.8bn |
| Stock-based pay | $1.2bn | $872.0m | $525.0m | $877.0m | $799.0m |
| Buybacks | $0 | $2.0bn | $0 | $0 | — |
| Dividends | — | — | — | — | — |
| Diluted shares | 5708m | 5733m | 5709m | 5700m | 5713m |
Educational only, not investment advice. Figures are as filed with the SEC: pay from the proxy's pay-versus-performance table, capital allocation from 10-K XBRL data, insider trades from Form 4s over the last six months, events from the last 5 years of filings. The peer group is the one the company chose. See the method.