Investors who owned stocks in the 2010s generally experienced some big gains. In fact, the SPDR S&P 500's (NYSE:SPY) total return for the decade was 250.5%. But there’s no question some big-name stocks did much better than others along the way.

Pfizer’s Difficult Decade: One solid performer of the last decade was pharmaceutical giant Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE).

Pfizer’s decade was defined by big acquisitions and even bigger failed acquisitions.

In 2016, Pfizer acquired cancer drug maker Medivation for $14 billion. Just last year, Pfizer acquired oncology play Array Biopharma for $10.6 billion.

Allergan was ultimately acquired by AbbVie Inc (NYSE:ABBV) for just $63 billion in 2019.

Pfizer shares started the 2010s trading at $19 and hit their decade low of $14 by the middle of 2010. Pfizer shares then went on a tear over the next three years, peaking at $32.96 in early 2014.

From there, Pfizer spent most of the next four years trading mostly sideways in a range between around $28 and $37. The stock finally broke out to the upside in mid-2018. Pfizer ultimately peaked at $46.47 in 2018, its high point of the decade.

Pfizer initially dropped as low as $27.88 during the COVID-19 sell-off earlier this year. However, shares have since rallied on optimism about the company’s coronavirus vaccine candidate it is developing with partner BioNTech. The U.S. government recently agreed to pay $2 billion for 100 million initial doses of the vaccine, assuming it meets safety and efficacy standards.

2020 And Beyond: The vaccine bounce has brought Pfizer shares all the way back up to around $37, making the stock a solid overall long-term investment during the past decade.

In fact, $1,000 worth of Pfizer stock in 2010 would be worth about $3,598 today, assuming reinvested dividends.

Looking ahead, analysts don’t expect the vaccine rally for Pfizer will continue much longer for Pfizer. The average price target among the13 analysts covering the stock is $38, suggesting 1.2% upside from current levels.