Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) Shares Sold by Azimuth Capital Investment Management LLC

Azimuth Capital Investment Management LLC trimmed its position in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 8.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,825 shares of the company’s stock after selling 450 shares during the quarter. Azimuth Capital Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $581,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in PM. NewSquare Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 53.7% in the fourth quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 206 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Philip Morris International in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Knuff & Co LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Philip Morris International in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Philip Morris International in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, Truvestments Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 113.8% in the fourth quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 357 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. 78.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on PM. Argus upgraded shares of Philip Morris International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Philip Morris International in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 target price on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $144.56.

Insider Activity at Philip Morris International

In other Philip Morris International news, SVP Yann Guerin sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $151.28, for a total transaction of $378,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 30,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,584,994.24. The trade was a 7.62 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 40,643 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.06, for a total transaction of $6,058,245.58. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 561,349 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $83,674,681.94. The trade was a 6.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 131,822 shares of company stock valued at $19,655,585 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Philip Morris International Stock Performance

PM opened at $151.71 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $151.14 and a 200-day moving average of $134.20. The company has a market capitalization of $236.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.64, a PEG ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.46. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 1-year low of $87.82 and a 1-year high of $163.08.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.49 by $0.06. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 7.89% and a negative return on equity of 120.08%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 20th will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.56%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 20th. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio is presently 119.73%.

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.