Sovereign Financial Group Inc. Trims Position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Sovereign Financial Group Inc. cut its stake in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 2.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,121 shares of the company’s stock after selling 80 shares during the period. Sovereign Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $495,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PM. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund raised its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 23.3% during the fourth quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund now owns 56,737 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,828,000 after purchasing an additional 10,703 shares during the last quarter. Empire Life Investments Inc. raised its position in Philip Morris International by 11.6% during the 4th quarter. Empire Life Investments Inc. now owns 94,423 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,364,000 after buying an additional 9,789 shares during the last quarter. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC raised its position in Philip Morris International by 80.9% during the 4th quarter. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC now owns 7,660 shares of the company’s stock worth $922,000 after buying an additional 3,425 shares during the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in Philip Morris International by 31.1% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 8,531 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,027,000 after buying an additional 2,023 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Symmetry Investments LP purchased a new position in Philip Morris International during the 4th quarter worth $1,966,000. 78.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently issued reports on PM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $182.00 target price (up from $156.00) on shares of Philip Morris International in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Citigroup increased their target price on Philip Morris International from $163.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Philip Morris International from $168.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on Philip Morris International from $175.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Philip Morris International presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $175.30.

Philip Morris International Price Performance

NYSE PM opened at $181.77 on Friday. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 1-year low of $98.93 and a 1-year high of $183.94. The company has a market capitalization of $282.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.30, a PEG ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.52. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $167.81 and a 200 day moving average price of $147.58.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.08. Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 120.08% and a net margin of 7.89%. The business had revenue of $9.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.10 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.50 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.