Bank of Nova Scotia Trims Stock Position in Philip Morris International Inc. $PM

Bank of Nova Scotia decreased its position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 2.8% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 1,025,606 shares of the company’s stock after selling 29,384 shares during the period. Bank of Nova Scotia’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $186,794,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of PM. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 31.1% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 8,531 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,027,000 after buying an additional 2,023 shares during the period. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,097 shares of the company’s stock valued at $252,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. Capstone Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in Philip Morris International in the first quarter worth about $238,000. AlphaCore Capital LLC bought a new position in Philip Morris International during the 1st quarter worth about $378,000. Finally, Benjamin Edwards Inc. grew its holdings in Philip Morris International by 7.6% during the 1st quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 47,106 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,477,000 after acquiring an additional 3,330 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Philip Morris International Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE PM opened at $147.87 on Monday. Philip Morris International Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $116.12 and a fifty-two week high of $186.69. The company has a market cap of $230.18 billion, a PE ratio of 26.79, a P/E/G ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 0.42. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $154.50 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $166.13.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 28th. The company reported $1.59 EPS for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $8.12 billion during the quarter. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 9.33% and a negative return on equity of 122.14%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, October 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 3rd were paid a dividend of $1.47 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 3rd. This is an increase from Philip Morris International’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.35. This represents a $5.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.0%. Philip Morris International’s payout ratio is presently 106.52%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on PM. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Philip Morris International in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $220.00 to $180.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Philip Morris International from $190.00 to $185.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 26th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $180.00 target price on Philip Morris International in a research report on Tuesday, October 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $175.00 price target on Philip Morris International and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $189.00.

About Philip Morris International

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.