Income Investors Face a Hard Truth About Pfizer’s Payout Safety

Quick Read Pfizer (PFE) paid $9.771B in dividends against free cash flow of $9.076B in FY2025, exceeding cash generation by $695M, while its GAAP payout ratio stands at 126.5% and total debt rose to $67.4B as liquid assets fell to $13.6B. The adjusted EPS payout ratio of 53.4% appears healthy, but non-cash charges mask underlying cash pressure. Pfizer’s dividend safety hinges on free cash flow recovery in 2026, as the current payout consumes more cash than the company generates, a practice that cannot ...