Strategy Asset Managers LLC Acquires 34,159 Shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Strategy Asset Managers LLC lifted its holdings in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 1,333.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 36,720 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 34,159 shares during the period. Strategy Asset Managers LLC’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $4,458,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Woodmont Investment Counsel LLC lifted its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Woodmont Investment Counsel LLC now owns 5,452 shares of the company’s stock valued at $662,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Philip Morris International by 4.2% in the third quarter. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 2,158 shares of the company’s stock valued at $262,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC boosted its stake in Philip Morris International by 0.7% during the second quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 12,888 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,306,000 after buying an additional 88 shares during the period. Dearborn Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 3.2% during the second quarter. Dearborn Partners LLC now owns 2,867 shares of the company’s stock valued at $291,000 after acquiring an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cypress Wealth Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Cypress Wealth Services LLC now owns 6,748 shares of the company’s stock valued at $819,000 after acquiring an additional 89 shares during the period. 78.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Werner Barth sold 7,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.98, for a total transaction of $974,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 95,418 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,402,431.64. The trade was a 7.29 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 101,918 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.85, for a total transaction of $13,234,052.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 959,761 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $124,624,965.85. The trade was a 9.60 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.14% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Philip Morris International Trading Down 1.7 %

Shares of NYSE:PM opened at $129.54 on Wednesday. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 52 week low of $87.82 and a 52 week high of $134.15. The company’s 50 day moving average is $124.44 and its two-hundred day moving average is $114.16. The company has a market cap of $201.41 billion, a PE ratio of 20.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.54.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $1.91 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.68 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.67 earnings per share. Philip Morris International’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.51 EPS for the current year.

Philip Morris International Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 26th were given a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.17%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 26th. This is a positive change from Philip Morris International’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 85.71%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on PM shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $118.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Barclays boosted their price objective on Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $155.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Citigroup lifted their target price on Philip Morris International from $118.50 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus restated a “buy” rating and issued a $145.00 price objective (up previously from $138.00) on shares of Philip Morris International in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $131.50.

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.