China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. Acquires Shares of 5,586 Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 5,586 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $686,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of PM. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 684.4% in the 2nd quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 251 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 219 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new position in shares of Philip Morris International in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Sachetta LLC raised its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 64.8% in the 2nd quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 267 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC raised its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 57.4% in the 2nd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 318 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Olistico Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Philip Morris International in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Institutional investors own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on PM shares. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $125.00 to $139.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. Stifel Nicolaus reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $145.00 price objective (up from $138.00) on shares of Philip Morris International in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Philip Morris International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $118.50 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $126.85.

Insider Activity

In other news, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 101,918 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.85, for a total value of $13,234,052.30. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 959,761 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $124,624,965.85. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, insider Werner Barth sold 7,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.98, for a total value of $974,850.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 95,418 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,402,431.64. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 101,918 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.85, for a total transaction of $13,234,052.30. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 959,761 shares in the company, valued at approximately $124,624,965.85. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 118,418 shares of company stock valued at $15,247,052. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Philip Morris International Price Performance

PM opened at $131.57 on Wednesday. Philip Morris International Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $87.82 and a fifty-two week high of $133.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $204.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.88, a PEG ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.55. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $122.99 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $110.58.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $1.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.82 by $0.09. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 12.10% and a negative return on equity of 117.94%. The firm had revenue of $9.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.68 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.67 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.45 EPS for the current year.

Philip Morris International Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 26th were paid a $1.35 dividend. This is a positive change from Philip Morris International’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 26th. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio is currently 85.71%.

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.