Pfizer has spent the past few years trying to convince investors that its post-pandemic business can stand on its own, and Goldman Sachs appears to be asking for more proof before getting more bullish on the stock.
Goldman Sachs analyst Asad Haider maintained a hold rating on Pfizer and lowered his price target to $26, according to TipRanks. The call comes just ahead of Pfizer’s next earnings report, giving investors a fresh Wall Street read on a drugmaker still working through falling Covid product sales, patent-loss pressure, and questions about how quickly its newer pipeline can support growth.
Pfizer heads into earnings with a tougher setup
Pfizer is scheduled to report its first-quarter 2026 results before the market opens on Tuesday, May 5, with the company set to host a conference call with analysts at 10 a.m. EDT that morning.
Pfizer said the call will cover the company’s first-quarter performance report, which will be issued earlier that day. Analysts expect Pfizer to report earnings of 77 cents per share on revenue of about $13.89 billion, according to MarketBeat.
That makes Goldman’s more cautious view important heading into the report. A $26 price target does not leave investors with much room for upside, unless Pfizer can show stronger-than-expected progress on either revenue stability, cost controls, or the drug pipeline that is supposed to carry the company through the second half of the decade.
Pfizer is still fighting the Covid reset
Pfizer has already told investors to expect 2026 revenue of $59.5 billion to $62.5 billion and adjusted diluted earnings per share of $2.80 to $3.00. The company also said its 2026 outlook includes an expected $1.5 billion decline in Covid product revenue from 2025 and another roughly $1.5 billion negative impact from products losing exclusivity.
That guidance explains why Wall Street has stayed cautious. Pfizer is still a large global pharmaceutical company with meaningful cash flow, but the company has to replace revenue from products facing generic competition while also proving that its non-Covid business can grow fast enough to offset the drag.
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The company has pointed to cost actions and non-Covid growth as part of the answer. Pfizer said it expects operational revenue growth of about 4% at the midpoint in 2026 when excluding Covid products and products facing loss of exclusivity.
It also expects adjusted selling, informational, and administrative expenses of $12.5 billion to $13.5 billion and adjusted research and development expenses of $10.5 billion to $11.5 billion.
Vyndamax gives Pfizer some breathing room
Pfizer did get one helpful development before earnings. Reuters reported that Pfizer reached settlements with Dexcel Pharma, Hikma Pharmaceuticals, and Cipla over Vyndamax, the company’s heart drug used to treat transthyretin amyloid cardiomyopathy. The agreements effectively keep generic competition away from the U.S. market until June 1, 2031, subject to other pending litigation.
Vyndamax has become one of Pfizer’s more important growth products. Pfizer generated nearly $6.4 billion from Vyndamax and related drugs in 2025, Reuters reported. The company now expects sales to remain relatively stable from 2028 through mid-2031 rather than face the sharper decline it had previously expected in 2029.
The settlement does not solve every problem facing Pfizer, but it does give the company more time. That time is valuable for a business trying to bridge the gap between older blockbusters facing competition and newer drugs that still need to prove their commercial impact.
Pfizer’s pipeline remains the larger question
For Pfizer, the earnings report will likely be about more than one quarter of revenue and profit. Investors will be listening for signs that management can turn pipeline investment into a clearer long-term growth story.
The company has said 2026 R&D spending will reflect a focus on key therapeutic areas and the development of PF-08634404, a PD-1 x VEGF bispecific antibody in-licensed from 3SBio, along with multiple clinical programs from Metsera. Pfizer has also been integrating assets tied to recent dealmaking as it tries to rebuild confidence beyond Covid and mature franchises.
That is where Goldman’s reset comes into focus. The lowered target suggests investors may need more than cost cuts and a favorable Vyndamax update to rerate Pfizer shares. They may need evidence that the company can create enough new growth to make up for the revenue it is losing elsewhere.
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