Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH Takes $111.90 Million Position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new position in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 929,792 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $111,900,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. NewSquare Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 53.7% during the 4th 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. bought a new position in Philip Morris International during the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Knuff & Co LLC purchased a new stake in Philip Morris International during the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Ball & Co Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in Philip Morris International in the fourth quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Ameriflex Group Inc. bought a new position in Philip Morris International during the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. 78.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PM has been the topic of several recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Needham & Company LLC began coverage on Philip Morris International in a report on Thursday. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Philip Morris International from $168.00 to $186.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Argus raised Philip Morris International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $182.00 price target (up from $156.00) on shares of Philip Morris International in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Philip Morris International has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $169.20.

Philip Morris International Trading Up 1.7%

NYSE PM opened at $178.23 on Tuesday. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 1-year low of $98.93 and a 1-year high of $179.73. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $163.08 and a 200-day moving average of $144.39. The firm has a market cap of $277.41 billion, a PE ratio of 39.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.50.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $9.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.10 billion. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 7.89% and a negative return on equity of 120.08%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.50 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 20th were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 20th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.03%. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio is presently 111.34%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Philip Morris International news, insider Lars Dahlgren sold 3,679 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.96, for a total value of $562,739.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 26,828 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,103,610.88. This represents a 12.06% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

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.