Pfizer Paid Out $14.6 Billion in Dividends Over the Last 18 Months. Can It Keep This Up Through the Patent Cliff?
Pfizer's dividend yield is 7% for a very good reason: investors are worried about the risk of a dividend cut.
Overview
The big reason to buy Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) right now is its huge 7% dividend yield. To put that into perspective, the S&P 500 index (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC) yields a tiny 1%, and the average pharmaceutical stock yields 1.5%. The big risk with buying Pfizer for its outsize yield is that the dividend could be cut. Here's a look at the problem.
In 2025, Pfizer paid roughly $9.8 billion in dividends. Through the first half of 2026, it paid roughly $4.8 billion. That's a total of $14.6 billion in dividends over the last six quarters. It is a lot of money going out the door at a time when the company needs cash to pay for other things.
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Originally published at www.fool.com.