Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) Shares Acquired by Westend Capital Management LLC

Westend Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 14.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,369 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 169 shares during the period. Westend Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $165,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on PM shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised 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 note on Wednesday, October 23rd. UBS Group boosted their target price on Philip Morris International from $103.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Morgan Stanley began coverage on Philip Morris International in a report on Thursday. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 price target for the company. Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “buy” rating and set a $145.00 price objective (up previously from $138.00) on shares of Philip Morris International in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on Philip Morris International from $118.50 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Philip Morris International has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $131.35.

Insider Activity at Philip Morris International

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

Philip Morris International Stock Up 1.7 %

Philip Morris International stock opened at $121.88 on Friday. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 52-week low of $87.82 and a 52-week high of $134.15. The firm has a market cap of $189.51 billion, a PE ratio of 19.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.54. The company’s 50 day moving average is $125.59 and its two-hundred day moving average is $121.05.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $1.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 analyst estimates of $9.68 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.67 earnings per share. Philip Morris International’s revenue was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate 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. Investors of record on Thursday, December 26th were issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 26th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.43%. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 85.71%.

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.