Howard Capital Management Inc. Grows Stock Position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Howard Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 5.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 10,406 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 535 shares during the period. Howard Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $1,252,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Dakota Wealth Management grew its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 10.2% during the 3rd quarter. Dakota Wealth Management now owns 23,282 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,827,000 after purchasing an additional 2,149 shares during the period. Highland Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Philip Morris International in the third quarter valued at about $218,000. Allworth Financial LP boosted its stake in Philip Morris International by 23.3% during the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 60,234 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,312,000 after buying an additional 11,399 shares during the period. Parcion Private Wealth LLC boosted its stake in Philip Morris International by 11.7% during the third quarter. Parcion Private Wealth LLC now owns 2,830 shares of the company’s stock worth $344,000 after buying an additional 296 shares during the period. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 16.2% during the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 115,698 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,955,000 after acquiring an additional 16,154 shares during the last quarter. 78.63% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Jacek Olczak sold 40,000 shares of Philip Morris International stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.87, for a total transaction of $5,954,800.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 547,426 shares in the company, valued at approximately $81,495,308.62. The trade was a 6.81 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Yann Guerin sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.28, for a total value of $378,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 30,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,584,994.24. The trade was a 7.62 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 128,143 shares of company stock worth $19,092,846. 0.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Philip Morris International Stock Up 1.9 %

Philip Morris International stock opened at $154.39 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $240.05 billion, a PE ratio of 34.23, a P/E/G ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.55. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $129.81 and its 200 day simple moving average is $126.52. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 52 week low of $87.82 and a 52 week high of $154.64.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.49 by $0.06. Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 120.08% and a net margin of 7.89%. On average, research analysts expect that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 26th were paid a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 26th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.50%. Philip Morris International’s payout ratio is currently 119.73%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on PM shares. Barclays decreased their price target on Philip Morris International from $155.00 to $145.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. StockNews.com lowered Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. UBS Group lifted their target price on Philip Morris International from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $141.22.

Philip Morris International 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.