Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Buys 190,201 Shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 1.4% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 13,422,920 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 190,201 shares during the quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $1,615,449,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. grew its holdings in Philip Morris International by 457.5% in the 3rd quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 223 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 183 shares during the last quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC grew its holdings in Philip Morris International by 203.8% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 240 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 161 shares during the last quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Philip Morris International in the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in Philip Morris International in the 4th quarter worth $37,000. Finally, Asset Dedication LLC grew its holdings in Philip Morris International by 55.5% in the 4th quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 412 shares of the company’s stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 147 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Philip Morris International Price Performance

Shares of NYSE PM opened at $158.78 on Tuesday. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 1 year low of $87.82 and a 1 year high of $158.85. The stock has a market cap of $246.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.55. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $133.60 and a 200 day moving average of $128.18.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. Research analysts expect that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 26th were given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 26th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.40%. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 119.73%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised 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 started coverage on shares of Philip Morris International in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 target price for the company. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $144.56.

Insider Activity at Philip Morris International

In other Philip Morris International news, CFO Emmanuel Babeau sold 30,000 shares of Philip Morris International stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.85, for a total value of $4,465,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 139,105 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,705,779.25. The trade was a 17.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Reginaldo Dobrowolski sold 5,000 shares of Philip Morris International stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $3,117,354.12. This trade represents a 19.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 128,143 shares of company stock valued at $19,092,846 in the last three months. Company 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.