Aptus Capital Advisors LLC Has $1.99 Million Position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Aptus Capital Advisors LLC lowered its position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 5.4% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 16,374 shares of the company’s stock after selling 927 shares during the period. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $1,988,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Woodmont Investment Counsel LLC boosted its stake in Philip Morris International by 1.6% during the third quarter. Woodmont Investment Counsel LLC now owns 5,452 shares of the company’s stock valued at $662,000 after buying an additional 86 shares during the period. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Philip Morris International by 4.2% during the third quarter. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 2,158 shares of the company’s stock valued at $262,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the period. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC boosted its stake in Philip Morris International by 0.7% during the second quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 12,888 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,306,000 after buying an additional 88 shares during the period. Dearborn Partners LLC lifted its stake in Philip Morris International by 3.2% during the second quarter. Dearborn Partners LLC now owns 2,867 shares of the company’s stock worth $291,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cypress Wealth Services LLC lifted its stake in Philip Morris International by 1.3% during the third quarter. Cypress Wealth Services LLC now owns 6,748 shares of the company’s stock worth $819,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Philip Morris International Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:PM opened at $125.24 on Thursday. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 1 year low of $87.82 and a 1 year high of $134.15. The company has a market cap of $194.73 billion, a PE ratio of 19.88, a P/E/G ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.54. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $124.21 and its 200 day moving average is $113.02.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $1.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.82 by $0.09. Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 117.94% and a net margin of 10.35%. The company had revenue of $9.91 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.68 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.67 EPS. Philip Morris International’s revenue was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 26th were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This is an increase from Philip Morris International’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 26th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.31%. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio is 85.71%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Philip Morris International news, insider Werner Barth sold 7,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.98, for a total transaction of $974,850.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 95,418 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,402,431.64. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 101,918 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was 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 $124,624,965.85. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Werner Barth sold 7,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.98, for a total value of $974,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 95,418 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,402,431.64. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PM has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Bank of America lifted their price target on Philip Morris International from $125.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. StockNews.com raised Philip Morris International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on Philip Morris International from $118.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Philip Morris International from $126.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $145.00 price target (up previously from $138.00) on shares of Philip Morris International in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Philip Morris International currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $127.85.

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.