PFG Investments LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

PFG Investments LLC raised its stake in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 1.9% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 5,951 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 109 shares during the quarter. PFG Investments LLC’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $560,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 3.1% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 58,592,611 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,793,812,000 after purchasing an additional 1,745,868 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley grew its position in Philip Morris International by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 43,512,330 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,403,883,000 after acquiring an additional 411,358 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in Philip Morris International by 12.6% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 27,821,802 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,575,742,000 after acquiring an additional 3,121,732 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in Philip Morris International by 33.5% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 17,147,790 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,587,542,000 after acquiring an additional 4,304,089 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in Philip Morris International by 1.7% in the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 16,050,540 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,332,355,000 after acquiring an additional 260,832 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Philip Morris International from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 29th. UBS Group lowered Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $105.00 to $86.50 in a research report on Tuesday, January 23rd. Societe Generale upgraded Philip Morris International from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $87.50 price target for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 13th. Finally, Argus restated a “hold” rating on shares of Philip Morris International in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Philip Morris International currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $105.40.

Philip Morris International Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE PM opened at $92.23 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $143.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.37, a PEG ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 0.61. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $91.56 and a 200 day moving average price of $92.48. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 52-week low of $87.23 and a 52-week high of $101.92.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The company reported $1.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by ($0.08). The firm had revenue of $9.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.99 billion. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 8.53% and a negative return on equity of 116.29%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.39 EPS. Analysts forecast that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Philip Morris International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 9th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 21st will be paid a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 20th. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 103.59%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Werner Barth sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.46, for a total value of $457,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 102,918 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,412,880.28. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, insider Massimo Andolina sold 8,250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.63, for a total value of $772,447.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 94,629 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,860,113.27. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Werner Barth sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.46, for a total value of $457,300.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 102,918 shares in the company, valued at $9,412,880.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 15,250 shares of company stock valued at $1,411,128 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Philip Morris International Company Profile

Philip Morris International Inc operates as a tobacco company working to delivers a smoke-free future and evolving portfolio for the long-term to include products outside of the tobacco and nicotine sector. The company's product portfolio primarily consists of cigarettes and smoke-free products, including heat-not-burn, vapor, and oral nicotine products primarily under the IQOS and ZYN brands; and consumer accessories, such as lighters and matches.