Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) Raised to Buy at UBS Group

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM – Get Rating) was upgraded by stock analysts at UBS Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report issued on Wednesday, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm currently has a $116.00 price objective on the stock, up from their prior price objective of $106.00. UBS Group’s target price would suggest a potential upside of 17.93% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on PM. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Philip Morris International from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $95.00 to $120.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 25th. Societe Generale began coverage on Philip Morris International in a research report on Monday, January 23rd. They set a “sell” rating and a $90.00 price objective for the company. StockNews.com cut Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, February 18th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Philip Morris International from $109.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 2nd. Finally, Citigroup reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $109.00 target price on shares of Philip Morris International in a report on Tuesday, December 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $109.73.

Philip Morris International Stock Performance

Shares of PM stock opened at $98.36 on Wednesday. Philip Morris International has a 1 year low of $82.85 and a 1 year high of $109.81. The stock has a market cap of $152.48 billion, a PE ratio of 16.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.69. The business’s fifty day moving average is $101.51 and its 200-day moving average is $96.82.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM – Get Rating) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 9th. The company reported $1.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.29 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $8.15 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.54 billion. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 11.22% and a negative return on equity of 127.24%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.35 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Philip Morris International will post 6.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Philip Morris International

In other news, insider Stacey Kennedy sold 20,308 shares of Philip Morris International stock in a transaction on Friday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.30, for a total transaction of $2,036,892.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 22,418 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,248,525.40. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Stacey Kennedy sold 20,308 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.30, for a total transaction of $2,036,892.40. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 22,418 shares in the company, valued at $2,248,525.40. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 80,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.35, for a total transaction of $8,028,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 1,007,048 shares in the company, valued at approximately $101,057,266.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 109,064 shares of company stock worth $10,951,963. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Lakewood Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Philip Morris International in the 4th quarter valued at $572,000. Panoramic Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Philip Morris International during the fourth quarter worth about $267,000. Meixler Investment Management Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 5.3% during the fourth quarter. Meixler Investment Management Ltd. now owns 37,665 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,812,000 after buying an additional 1,905 shares during the period. Voya Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Philip Morris International by 5.3% in the fourth quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 1,999,019 shares of the company’s stock valued at $202,321,000 after purchasing an additional 100,592 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rebalance LLC acquired a new position in shares of Philip Morris International in the 4th quarter valued at $45,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.85% of the company’s stock.

About Philip Morris International

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Philip Morris International, Inc is a holding company engaged in the manufacturing and sale of cigarettes, tobacco, and nicotine-containing products. Its products include cigarettes and reduced-risk products, including heat-not-burn, vapor, and oral nicotine products, which are sold in markets outside the U.S.