Waddell & Associates LLC Takes Position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Waddell & Associates LLC acquired a new position in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 1,895 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $230,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of PM. 49 Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Philip Morris International by 3.6% during the third quarter. 49 Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,432 shares of the company’s stock worth $295,000 after buying an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. Woodmont Investment Counsel LLC raised its stake in Philip Morris International by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Woodmont Investment Counsel LLC now owns 5,452 shares of the company’s stock valued at $662,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Philip Morris International by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 2,158 shares of the company’s stock valued at $262,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC boosted its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 0.7% during the 2nd quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 12,888 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,306,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dearborn Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 3.2% during the second quarter. Dearborn Partners LLC now owns 2,867 shares of the company’s stock worth $291,000 after buying an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. 78.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Philip Morris International Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of PM stock opened at $129.99 on Friday. Philip Morris International Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $87.82 and a fifty-two week high of $134.15. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $124.77 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $114.62. The stock has a market cap of $202.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.54.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $1.91 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.82 by $0.09. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 10.35% and a negative return on equity of 117.94%. The business had revenue of $9.91 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.68 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.67 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 26th were given a $1.35 dividend. This is an increase from Philip Morris International’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 26th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.15%. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio is presently 85.71%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PM has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Philip Morris International from $126.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $145.00 price target (up from $138.00) on shares of Philip Morris International in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $118.50 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $118.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $131.50.

Insider Activity

In related news, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 101,918 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.85, for a total value of $13,234,052.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 959,761 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $124,624,965.85. This represents a 9.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Werner Barth sold 7,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.98, for a total value of $974,850.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 95,418 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,402,431.64. This trade represents a 7.29 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

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.