Cannell & Spears LLC Sells 3,285 Shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Cannell & Spears LLC decreased its position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 8.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 37,056 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,285 shares during the quarter. Cannell & Spears LLC’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $4,460,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Meridian Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in Philip Morris International by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. Meridian Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,781 shares of the company’s stock valued at $214,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 53.7% during the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 206 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV lifted its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 3,628 shares of the company’s stock valued at $437,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. Balboa Wealth Partners grew its position in Philip Morris International by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Balboa Wealth Partners now owns 3,712 shares of the company’s stock worth $447,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Centurion Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Philip Morris International by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Centurion Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,229 shares of the company’s stock worth $268,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. 78.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Philip Morris International

In other news, SVP Yann Guerin sold 2,500 shares of Philip Morris International stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.28, for a total value of $378,200.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 30,308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,584,994.24. This trade represents a 7.62 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 40,643 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.06, for a total value of $6,058,245.58. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 561,349 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $83,674,681.94. The trade was a 6.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 131,822 shares of company stock worth $19,655,585 over the last three months. 0.13% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Philip Morris International Price Performance

Shares of PM opened at $158.85 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $246.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.22, a PEG ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a 50-day moving average of $146.57 and a 200 day moving average of $132.43. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 1-year low of $87.82 and a 1-year high of $159.87.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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, equities 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 company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 20th will be paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 20th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.40%. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio is currently 119.73%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on PM. Morgan Stanley began coverage on Philip Morris International in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 price objective for the company. StockNews.com lowered shares of Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Argus raised shares of Philip Morris International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $144.56.

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.