Essex Financial Services Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Essex Financial Services Inc. raised its stake in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 5.3% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 28,346 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,416 shares during the quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $3,411,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. BostonPremier Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Philip Morris International during the 4th quarter worth approximately $445,000. Violich Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in Philip Morris International by 72.9% during the fourth quarter. Violich Capital Management Inc. now owns 75,605 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,099,000 after purchasing an additional 31,876 shares in the last quarter. Mill Creek Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 7.7% during the fourth quarter. Mill Creek Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,898 shares of the company’s stock worth $228,000 after buying an additional 136 shares during the period. First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc. grew its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 78,666 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,467,000 after buying an additional 618 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Focus Financial Network Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 7.6% in the 4th quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. now owns 5,152 shares of the company’s stock valued at $620,000 after buying an additional 364 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Philip Morris International Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:PM opened at $146.58 on Tuesday. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 12 month low of $87.82 and a 12 month high of $146.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $227.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.55. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $125.66 and its 200 day moving average price is $124.06.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.55 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.49 by $0.06. Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 120.08% and a net margin of 9.24%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.11 EPS for the current year.

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 26th were given a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.68%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 26th. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 119.73%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently commented on PM. StockNews.com cut Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted 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. Finally, Barclays reduced their price objective on Philip Morris International from $155.00 to $145.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $134.35.

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.