Since the United Kingdom authorized the use of the COVID-19 vaccine from Pfizer and BioNTech, the American pharmaceutical giant has taken center stage in the fight against COVID-19. According to data presented by StockApps.com, the market capitalization of the American pharmaceutical multinational has jumped by more than 26 billion dollars since the United Kingdom has announced the use of its vaccine.

Yet, as one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world, Pfizer had witnessed a sharp drop in its market capitalization amid the COVID-19 crisis. In December 2019, the combined value of the shares of the American pharmaceutical giant stood at $216.8 billion, Yahoo Finance data revealed. After the stock market crash in March, that figure fell to 181.2 billion dollars.

The negative trend continued in the second quarter of the year, with the pharmaceutical market capitalization reaching 181.6 billion dollars in June. Although Pfizer's share price rose slightly in the third quarter, with market capitalization reaching nearly $204 billion in September, it was still $12 billion below December levels.

This half-fig half-reason trend faded when Pfizer became the first pharmaceutical company whose vaccine was officially authorized for emergency use in the United Kingdom. Pfizer stock prices jumped in a few days. A final analysis of the vaccine's Phase 3 trial showed that it was 95% effective in preventing infections, and the United Kingdom ordered 40 million doses of the vaccine, enough to vaccinate 20 million people.

On November 25, the market capitalization of the American pharmaceutical company stood at $203 billion. Over the next five days, that figure grew to $213 billion and continued to rise. On December 2, it stood at $226.7 billion, an increase of 4.5% year-on-year. MacroTrends data shows that this value has continued to grow, reaching $229.2 billion this week.

Despite becoming the first company whose vaccine was authorized for emergency use, Pfizer suffered the hardest financial blow among the three biggest pharmaceutical giants. In 2019, Pfizer generated $51.75 billion in total revenue, with fourth-quarter sales contributing approximately $12.7 billion, compared to $14 billion in the same quarter a year ago. However, during the first few months of 2020, the American pharmaceutical giant's sales fell by 7% to $12.2 billion.

The negative trend continued in the second quarter, with revenues falling to $11.8 billion, a decrease of 9% year-on-year. Third-quarter sales fell by $500 million, or 4%, due to COVID-19, mainly due to lower demand for some products in China and disruptions to patient wellness visits in the United States, which negatively impacted prescribing models of specific products. Statistics show that Pfizer's revenue for the nine months of 2020 was $35.9 billion, a decrease of $3 billion year over year.