Morningstar Investment Management LLC Cuts Holdings in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Morningstar Investment Management LLC reduced its stake in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 5.2% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 5,617 shares of the company’s stock after selling 311 shares during the period. Morningstar Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $676,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Boston Financial Mangement LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 113.3% in the fourth quarter. Boston Financial Mangement LLC now owns 4,619 shares of the company’s stock worth $556,000 after buying an additional 2,453 shares in the last quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 30,454 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,665,000 after purchasing an additional 1,033 shares in the last quarter. Advyzon Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Philip Morris International in the fourth quarter worth about $361,000. Corps Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Philip Morris International in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,407,000. Finally, Cumberland Partners Ltd raised its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 12.5% during the fourth quarter. Cumberland Partners Ltd now owns 62,825 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,561,000 after acquiring an additional 6,965 shares during the last quarter. 78.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Barclays decreased their price target on Philip Morris International from $155.00 to $145.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. StockNews.com downgraded Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Philip Morris International in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $141.22.

Philip Morris International Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of Philip Morris International stock opened at $149.64 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $232.67 billion, a PE ratio of 33.18, a P/E/G ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.55. Philip Morris International Inc. has a twelve month low of $87.82 and a twelve month high of $151.22. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $128.76 and a 200 day moving average price of $125.90.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.55 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 expect that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.13 EPS for the current 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 issued a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.61%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 26th. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 119.73%.

Insider Transactions at Philip Morris International

In related news, VP Reginaldo Dobrowolski sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 sale, 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

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.