Analyst IMS Investment Management Services Ltd. Takes Position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Analyst IMS Investment Management Services Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 8,796 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,396,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in PM. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 139,432,392 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,780,688,000 after purchasing an additional 1,167,810 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors boosted its stake in Philip Morris International by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 122,584,210 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,752,926,000 after buying an additional 4,216,586 shares during the period. GQG Partners LLC grew its position in Philip Morris International by 14.3% during the fourth quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 48,746,809 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,866,678,000 after buying an additional 6,092,558 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Philip Morris International by 9.9% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 35,286,582 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,241,837,000 after acquiring an additional 3,185,258 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 17,276,790 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,079,262,000 after acquiring an additional 516,617 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on PM shares. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Philip Morris International from $182.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Argus upgraded shares of Philip Morris International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $168.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Barclays reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $220.00 target price (up from $205.00) on shares of Philip Morris International in a research report on Friday, June 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $176.80.

Philip Morris International Stock Performance

PM stock opened at $183.50 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $285.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 0.52. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $172.01 and its 200 day moving average is $150.05. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 52 week low of $98.93 and a 52 week high of $186.69.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.08. Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 122.40% and a net margin of 8.43%. The firm had revenue of $9.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.10 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.50 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 EPS for the current year.

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 27th will be given a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 27th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.94%. Philip Morris International’s payout ratio is currently 111.34%.

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.