Purkiss Capital Advisors LLC Makes New Investment in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Purkiss Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 2,017 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $243,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in PM. State Street Corp boosted its position in Philip Morris International by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 54,711,621 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,715,237,000 after buying an additional 224,840 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 2.0% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 32,101,324 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,886,818,000 after acquiring an additional 621,034 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 40.9% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 23,168,446 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,812,649,000 after purchasing an additional 6,721,094 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 21.0% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 16,070,482 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,934,083,000 after purchasing an additional 2,785,987 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in Philip Morris International by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 13,000,570 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,560,752,000 after purchasing an additional 376,406 shares during the last quarter. 78.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Philip Morris International

In other news, insider Werner Barth sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.67, for a total transaction of $1,486,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 106,244 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,795,295.48. The trade was a 8.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 40,643 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.06, for a total transaction of $6,058,245.58. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 561,349 shares in the company, valued at approximately $83,674,681.94. The trade was a 6.75 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 128,143 shares of company stock valued at $19,092,846 over the last ninety days. 0.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on PM shares. UBS Group upped their price target 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. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Philip Morris International in a report on Thursday, January 16th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 target price on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Philip Morris International presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $144.56.

Philip Morris International Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE PM opened at $155.26 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $241.41 billion, a PE ratio of 34.43, a P/E/G ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.55. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $132.90 and its 200 day simple moving average is $127.81. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 12-month low of $87.82 and a 12-month high of $158.39.

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

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 26th were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 26th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.48%. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio is 119.73%.

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.