Spartan Planning & Wealth Management Sells 463 Shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Spartan Planning & Wealth Management lessened its holdings in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 13.7% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 2,919 shares of the company’s stock after selling 463 shares during the period. Spartan Planning & Wealth Management’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $463,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. NewSquare Capital LLC grew its position in 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 acquiring an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Philip Morris International in the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Knuff & Co LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Philip Morris International during the fourth quarter valued at about $36,000. Ball & Co Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Philip Morris International during the fourth quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Ameriflex Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Philip Morris International during the fourth quarter valued at about $36,000. Institutional investors own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on PM shares. UBS Group raised Philip Morris International from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $130.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Argus raised Philip Morris International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Citigroup lifted their price target on Philip Morris International from $163.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $169.20.

Insider Buying and Selling at Philip Morris International

In other Philip Morris International news, insider Lars Dahlgren sold 3,679 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.96, for a total value of $562,739.84. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 26,828 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,103,610.88. The trade was a 12.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Philip Morris International Price Performance

Philip Morris International stock opened at $180.74 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $165.26 and its 200 day moving average is $145.62. The firm has a market cap of $281.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.08, a P/E/G ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.50. Philip Morris International Inc. has a one year low of $98.93 and a one year high of $181.36.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.08. Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 120.08% and a net margin of 7.89%. The firm had revenue of $9.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.10 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.50 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate 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. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 20th were paid a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 20th. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 111.34%.

About Philip Morris International

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.