Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp Sells 30,792 Shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp reduced its position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 3.2% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 923,351 shares of the company’s stock after selling 30,792 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $111,125,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Meridian Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in Philip Morris International by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. Meridian Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,781 shares of the company’s stock valued at $214,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 53.7% during the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 206 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV grew its stake in Philip Morris International by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 3,628 shares of the company’s stock worth $437,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the period. Balboa Wealth Partners increased its holdings in Philip Morris International by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Balboa Wealth Partners now owns 3,712 shares of the company’s stock worth $447,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Centurion Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Philip Morris International by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Centurion Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,229 shares of the company’s stock worth $268,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. 78.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Barclays increased their price target on Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Philip Morris International in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 target price on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus lifted 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 note on Friday, February 7th. Argus upgraded shares of Philip Morris International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on Philip Morris International from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Philip Morris International presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $144.56.

Philip Morris International Price Performance

NYSE:PM opened at $151.66 on Tuesday. Philip Morris International Inc. has a one year low of $87.82 and a one year high of $159.51. The company has a market cap of $235.81 billion, a PE ratio of 33.63, a PEG ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.53. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $143.06 and a 200-day moving average of $131.40.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last released 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, equities research analysts expect that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 20th will be given a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 20th. Philip Morris International’s payout ratio is currently 119.73%.

Insider Activity at Philip Morris International

In other Philip Morris International news, SVP Yann Guerin sold 2,500 shares of the 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 sale, the senior vice president now owns 30,308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,584,994.24. This trade represents a 7.62 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Lars Dahlgren sold 3,679 shares of Philip Morris International stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.96, for a total transaction of $562,739.84. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 26,828 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,103,610.88. This represents a 12.06 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 131,822 shares of company stock valued at $19,655,585. 0.13% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.