Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. Sells 1,134 Shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. cut its stake in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 5.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 21,566 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,134 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co.’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $2,029,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PM. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System bought a new stake in shares of Philip Morris International during the 4th quarter valued at $8,834,000. MV Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 16.3% in the fourth quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. now owns 855 shares of the company’s stock valued at $80,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC grew its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC now owns 20,728 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,950,000 after purchasing an additional 486 shares in the last quarter. Simplicity Solutions LLC raised its stake in Philip Morris International by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Simplicity Solutions LLC now owns 73,413 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,907,000 after purchasing an additional 704 shares during the period. Finally, Graypoint LLC boosted its stake in Philip Morris International by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 8,796 shares of the company’s stock worth $828,000 after purchasing an additional 412 shares during the period. 78.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Philip Morris International news, insider Massimo Andolina sold 8,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.63, for a total value of $772,447.50. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 94,629 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,860,113.27. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Philip Morris International news, insider Werner Barth sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.46, for a total transaction of $457,300.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 102,918 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,412,880.28. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Massimo Andolina sold 8,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.63, for a total value of $772,447.50. Following the sale, the insider now owns 94,629 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,860,113.27. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 15,250 shares of company stock valued at $1,411,128. Insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Societe Generale upgraded shares of Philip Morris International from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $87.50 price objective on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 13th. UBS Group cut shares of Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $105.00 to $86.50 in a research note on Tuesday, January 23rd. Finally, Argus reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Philip Morris International in a report on Tuesday, March 5th. One investment 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 data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $105.40.

Philip Morris International Price Performance

Shares of NYSE PM opened at $88.85 on Monday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $91.19 and its two-hundred day moving average is $92.08. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 1-year low of $87.23 and a 1-year high of $101.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $138.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.70, a PEG ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.61.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 8th. The company reported $1.36 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by ($0.08). The firm had revenue of $9.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.99 billion. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 8.53% and a negative return on equity of 116.29%. The company’s revenue was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.39 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 9th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 21st were issued a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 20th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.85%. Philip Morris International’s payout ratio is 103.59%.

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.