Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) Shares Up 0.2% on Analyst Upgrade

Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) shares rose 0.2% on Monday after Barclays raised their price target on the stock from $175.00 to $205.00. Barclays currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Philip Morris International traded as high as $171.52 and last traded at $171.23. Approximately 459,092 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 92% from the average daily volume of 5,537,550 shares. The stock had previously closed at $170.86.

Several other analysts have also weighed in on PM. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and set a $182.00 price target (up previously from $156.00) on shares of Philip Morris International in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Argus raised Philip Morris International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $163.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. UBS Group upgraded Philip Morris International from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $130.00 to $170.00 in a report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Philip Morris International from $168.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $166.33.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Reginaldo Dobrowolski sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.88, for a total value of $749,400.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 20,799 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,117,354.12. This trade represents a 19.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jacek Olczak sold 40,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.87, for a total value of $5,954,800.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 547,426 shares in the company, valued at $81,495,308.62. This trade represents a 6.81 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 131,822 shares of company stock valued at $19,655,585 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Philip Morris International

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 4.9% during the 1st quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 574,414 shares of the company’s stock worth $91,177,000 after purchasing an additional 26,648 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. raised its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 13.5% in the first quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 278,873 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,266,000 after buying an additional 33,075 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 13.2% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 606,408 shares of the company’s stock worth $96,255,000 after purchasing an additional 70,774 shares during the period. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. boosted its stake in Philip Morris International by 7.5% in the 1st quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 100,761 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,994,000 after buying an additional 7,046 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tufton Capital Management grew its holdings in Philip Morris International by 0.7% in the first quarter. Tufton Capital Management now owns 43,127 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,846,000 after purchasing an additional 310 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Philip Morris International Stock Performance

The business has a fifty day moving average price of $157.95 and a 200 day moving average price of $140.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $270.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.50.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.69 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $9.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.10 billion. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 7.89% and a negative return on equity of 120.08%. The firm’s revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.50 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Philip Morris International Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 20th were paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.10%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 20th. Philip Morris International’s payout ratio is 111.34%.

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.