Empirical Finance LLC Boosts Stake in Philip Morris International Inc. $PM

Empirical Finance LLC grew its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 0.6% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 53,860 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 340 shares during the period. Empirical Finance LLC’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $9,810,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Nicholas Wealth LLC. increased its holdings in Philip Morris International by 5.5% during the 2nd quarter. Nicholas Wealth LLC. now owns 6,712 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,222,000 after purchasing an additional 351 shares during the last quarter. Dorsey Wright & Associates grew its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 44.8% during the second quarter. Dorsey Wright & Associates now owns 36,169 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,587,000 after buying an additional 11,193 shares in the last quarter. Outlook Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Philip Morris International in the second quarter worth $227,000. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. increased its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 54.0% in the second quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 98,780 shares of the company’s stock worth $17,535,000 after buying an additional 34,638 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TRUE Private Wealth Advisors raised its holdings in Philip Morris International by 44.4% in the second quarter. TRUE Private Wealth Advisors now owns 6,102 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,111,000 after acquiring an additional 1,875 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Philip Morris International Stock Up 2.2%

Shares of PM stock opened at $156.05 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $242.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.27, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.43. The business has a 50 day moving average of $157.08 and a two-hundred day moving average of $167.63. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 52 week low of $116.12 and a 52 week high of $186.69.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 28th. The company reported $1.59 earnings per share for the quarter. The business had revenue of $8.12 billion for the quarter. Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 122.14% and a net margin of 9.33%. Analysts expect that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, October 20th. Investors of record on Friday, October 3rd were paid a dividend of $1.47 per share. This is a boost from Philip Morris International’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.35. This represents a $5.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 3rd. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 106.52%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on PM shares. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $220.00 to $180.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday. Stifel Nicolaus set a $180.00 price objective on Philip Morris International in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Philip Morris International in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. UBS Group decreased their target price on Philip Morris International from $177.00 to $166.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, September 5th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and set a $195.00 price target on shares of Philip Morris International in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $189.56.

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.