Cravens & Co Advisors LLC Grows Stake in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Cravens & Co Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 0.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 10,052 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the period. Philip Morris International comprises approximately 0.9% of Cravens & Co Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding. Cravens & Co Advisors LLC’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $1,210,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Range Financial Group LLC grew its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 504.9% in the 4th quarter. Range Financial Group LLC now owns 22,915 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,758,000 after acquiring an additional 19,127 shares in the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC lifted its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 18.9% in the 4th quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 100,826 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,134,000 after acquiring an additional 16,035 shares during the period. CWA Asset Management Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 37.5% in the fourth quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 24,200 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,912,000 after buying an additional 6,605 shares during the period. Ritholtz Wealth Management lifted its stake in Philip Morris International by 50.9% during the fourth quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 53,884 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,485,000 after purchasing an additional 18,183 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Czech National Bank grew its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 6.4% in the 4th quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 337,119 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,572,000 after acquiring an additional 20,390 shares during the last quarter. 78.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Philip Morris International Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE PM opened at $160.10 on Wednesday. Philip Morris International Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $88.43 and a fifty-two week high of $163.08. The stock has a market cap of $249.20 billion, a PE ratio of 35.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.46. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $152.85 and a 200-day moving average of $135.16.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last announced 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 negative return on equity of 120.08% and a net margin of 7.89%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 EPS for the current 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 paid a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 20th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.37%. Philip Morris International’s payout ratio is presently 119.73%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Philip Morris International

In other news, insider Lars Dahlgren sold 3,679 shares of the 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 26,828 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,103,610.88. This represents a 12.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Yann Guerin sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 30,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,584,994.24. This trade represents a 7.62 % decrease in their position. 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 in the last three months. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. 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 research report on Wednesday, February 26th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Argus upgraded shares of Philip Morris International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Philip Morris International in a report on Thursday, January 16th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 price objective on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $145.44.

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.