Philip Morris International Inc. $PM Shares Sold by Morgan Dempsey Capital Management LLC

Morgan Dempsey Capital Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 35.6% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 38,035 shares of the company’s stock after selling 21,008 shares during the quarter. Philip Morris International comprises about 2.9% of Morgan Dempsey Capital Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 11th biggest position. Morgan Dempsey Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $6,979,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. WCM Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 24,968.0% during the second quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 11,275,606 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,041,223,000 after buying an additional 11,230,626 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in shares of Philip Morris International during the first quarter valued at $1,712,994,000. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 26.4% during the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 21,840,422 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,466,730,000 after buying an additional 4,563,632 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 57.5% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 9,794,530 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,554,686,000 after buying an additional 3,575,158 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 22.2% during the first quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 9,018,628 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,431,527,000 after buying an additional 1,635,636 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Philip Morris International Trading Up 1.3%

PM stock opened at $158.08 on Friday. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 1 year low of $116.12 and a 1 year high of $186.69. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $163.40 and a 200 day simple moving average of $168.82. The firm has a market cap of $246.06 billion, a PE ratio of 30.05, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.46.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, March 28th. The company reported $1.59 earnings per share for the quarter. Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 120.86% and a net margin of 9.03%.The company had revenue of $8.12 billion for the quarter. As a group, analysts forecast that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 3rd will be issued a dividend of $1.47 per share. This represents a $5.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.7%. This is an increase from Philip Morris International’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.35. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 3rd. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio is 111.79%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Philip Morris International from $175.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Philip Morris International in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. They set a “buy” rating and a $220.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Philip Morris International in a research report on Thursday, September 4th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and set a $195.00 price objective on shares of Philip Morris International in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $195.44.

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.