Verity & Verity LLC Purchases 12,228 Shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Verity & Verity LLC raised its position in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 72.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 29,003 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 12,228 shares during the quarter. Verity & Verity LLC’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $3,491,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 40.9% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 23,168,446 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,812,649,000 after buying an additional 6,721,094 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in Philip Morris International by 57.2% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 9,241,612 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,121,932,000 after acquiring an additional 3,363,454 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 161.6% in the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,943,460 shares of the company’s stock valued at $235,936,000 after acquiring an additional 1,200,636 shares in the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 14,611.4% in the third quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 1,173,531 shares of the company’s stock worth $142,467,000 after acquiring an additional 1,165,554 shares during the period. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 13,666.6% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 999,729 shares of the company’s stock worth $121,367,000 after purchasing an additional 992,467 shares in the last quarter. 78.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Philip Morris International Trading Up 1.7 %

PM opened at $121.88 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $125.59 and a 200 day moving average of $121.05. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 12 month low of $87.82 and a 12 month high of $134.15. The firm has a market cap of $189.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.54.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $1.91 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.82 by $0.09. Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 117.94% and a net margin of 10.35%. The firm had revenue of $9.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.68 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.67 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 26th were paid a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 26th. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio is currently 85.71%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently commented on PM shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on Philip Morris International from $118.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $126.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Stifel Nicolaus reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $145.00 price target (up previously from $138.00) on shares of Philip Morris International in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Philip Morris International in a report on Thursday. They set an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 price objective for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $131.35.

Insider Transactions at Philip Morris International

In other Philip Morris International news, insider Werner Barth sold 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.98, for a total value of $974,850.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 95,418 shares in the company, valued at $12,402,431.64. This trade represents a 7.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 101,918 shares of Philip Morris International stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.85, for a total value of $13,234,052.30. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 959,761 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $124,624,965.85. This trade represents a 9.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Philip Morris International 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.