Verity & Verity LLC Has $4.46 Million Stake in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Verity & Verity LLC trimmed its stake in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 3.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 28,113 shares of the company’s stock after selling 890 shares during the period. Verity & Verity LLC’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $4,462,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of PM. Capital & Planning LLC increased its holdings in Philip Morris International by 7.1% in the fourth quarter. Capital & Planning LLC now owns 2,613 shares of the company’s stock valued at $318,000 after purchasing an additional 173 shares during the period. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings in Philip Morris International by 31.1% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 8,531 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,027,000 after purchasing an additional 2,023 shares during the period. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC increased its holdings in Philip Morris International by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,097 shares of the company’s stock valued at $252,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares during the period. Focus Financial Network Inc. grew its holdings in Philip Morris International by 7.6% during the 4th quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. now owns 5,152 shares of the company’s stock worth $620,000 after acquiring an additional 364 shares during the period. Finally, Sovran Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Philip Morris International during the 4th quarter worth about $287,000. 78.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on PM. 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 report on Thursday, April 24th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Barclays increased their price target on Philip Morris International from $175.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Philip Morris International from $168.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded Philip Morris International from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $130.00 to $170.00 in a report on Friday, April 25th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $175.30.

Philip Morris International Price Performance

PM stock opened at $183.98 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $286.37 billion, a PE ratio of 40.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.52. The company’s 50-day moving average is $169.95 and its 200-day moving average is $148.87. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 1 year low of $98.93 and a 1 year high of $184.10.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $9.30 billion for 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 business’s revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.50 EPS. On average, 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 will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Friday, June 27th will be given a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.94%. Philip Morris International’s payout ratio is 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.