XTX Topco Ltd Purchases New Holdings in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

XTX Topco Ltd acquired a new stake in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 26,750 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,219,000.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. GQG Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 14.3% during the 4th quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 48,746,809 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,866,678,000 after buying an additional 6,092,558 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Philip Morris International during the 4th quarter valued at $522,214,000. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 9.9% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 35,286,582 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,241,837,000 after acquiring an additional 3,185,258 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 2,785,987 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 9.6% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 14,249,131 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,714,883,000 after purchasing an additional 1,248,561 shares in the last quarter. 78.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Jacek Olczak sold 40,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was 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 directly owns 547,426 shares in the company, valued at $81,495,308.62. This trade represents a 6.81 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Yann Guerin sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were 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 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 three months, insiders have sold 131,822 shares of company stock valued at $19,655,585. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PM has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com cut Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Morgan Stanley initiated 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. Argus upgraded shares of Philip Morris International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $160.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, Philip Morris International has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $145.44.

Philip Morris International Trading Up 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE PM opened at $153.85 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $152.03 and its 200 day moving average is $134.73. The stock has a market cap of $239.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.11, a P/E/G ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.46. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 1-year low of $87.82 and a 1-year high of $163.08.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.55 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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, analysts forecast that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 20th were given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 20th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.51%. Philip Morris International’s 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.