Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd Boosts Stock Holdings in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd increased its position in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 110.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,184 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,250 shares during the period. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $744,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. NewSquare Capital LLC increased its holdings in Philip Morris International by 53.7% in the fourth 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. Dunhill Financial LLC increased its holdings in Philip Morris International by 203.8% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 240 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Philip Morris International in the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Knuff & Co LLC purchased a new position in Philip Morris International in the fourth quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new position in Philip Morris International in the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. 78.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Philip Morris International

In other news, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 40,643 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.06, for a total value of $6,058,245.58. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 561,349 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $83,674,681.94. This trade represents a 6.75 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP Reginaldo Dobrowolski sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.88, for a total transaction of $749,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 20,799 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,117,354.12. This represents a 19.38 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 131,822 shares of company stock worth $19,655,585 in the last quarter. 0.13% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Philip Morris International Stock Down 1.4 %

Shares of PM opened at $152.12 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $236.53 billion, a PE ratio of 33.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.53. The company’s fifty day moving average is $141.69 and its two-hundred day moving average is $130.95. Philip Morris International Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $87.82 and a fifty-two week high of $159.51.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 20th will be issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 20th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.55%. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 119.73%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on PM. StockNews.com cut shares of Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of Philip Morris International in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Argus raised shares of Philip Morris International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $144.56.

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.