Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) Shares Sold by Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. lowered its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 35.6% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 32,137 shares of the company’s stock after selling 17,779 shares during the quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A.’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $3,868,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 139,432,392 shares of the company’s stock worth $16,780,688,000 after buying an additional 1,167,810 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors grew its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 122,584,210 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,752,926,000 after purchasing an additional 4,216,586 shares during the last quarter. GQG Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 14.3% in the fourth quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 48,746,809 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,866,678,000 after purchasing an additional 6,092,558 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 9.9% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 35,286,582 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,241,837,000 after purchasing an additional 3,185,258 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 17,276,790 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,079,262,000 after purchasing an additional 516,617 shares during the last quarter. 78.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Philip Morris International

In related news, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 40,643 shares of the company’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 in the company, valued at approximately $83,674,681.94. This represents a 6.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Lars Dahlgren sold 3,679 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.96, for a total value of $562,739.84. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 26,828 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,103,610.88. The trade was a 12.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 131,822 shares of company stock valued at $19,655,585 over the last three months. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PM has been the topic of several recent research reports. UBS Group raised shares of Philip Morris International from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $130.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $182.00 target price (up previously from $156.00) on shares of Philip Morris International in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Philip Morris International from $168.00 to $186.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Philip Morris International currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $163.00.

Philip Morris International Stock Performance

PM opened at $170.19 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $264.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.74, a PEG ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.46. Philip Morris International Inc. has a one year low of $94.42 and a one year high of $171.63. The business’s fifty day moving average is $155.51 and its two-hundred day moving average is $137.57.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.69 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $9.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.10 billion. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 7.89% and a negative return on equity of 120.08%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.50 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Announces Dividend

The business 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. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 20th. Philip Morris International’s payout ratio is 111.34%.

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.