Rockingstone Advisors LLC Increases Holdings in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Rockingstone Advisors LLC raised its stake in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 2.7% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 24,377 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 649 shares during the period. Philip Morris International comprises approximately 1.3% of Rockingstone Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 28th largest position. Rockingstone Advisors LLC’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $2,934,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. grew its position in Philip Morris International by 457.5% during the 3rd quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 223 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 183 shares during the last quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC grew its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 203.8% during the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 240 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 161 shares during the last quarter. Concord Wealth Partners increased its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 2,709.1% during the third quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 309 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 298 shares in the last quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Philip Morris International in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $54,000. Finally, Reston Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Philip Morris International in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $58,000. 78.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Philip Morris International Trading Down 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE PM opened at $118.45 on Thursday. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 12-month low of $87.82 and a 12-month high of $134.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $184.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 0.54. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $125.80 and a 200 day moving average of $121.07.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. The firm had revenue of $9.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.68 billion. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 10.35% and a negative return on equity of 117.94%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.67 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.51 EPS for the current year.

Philip Morris International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 26th were given a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 26th. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio is presently 85.71%.

Insider Activity at Philip Morris International

In other Philip Morris International news, 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 transaction of $974,850.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 95,418 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,402,431.64. The trade was a 7.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 101,918 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 owns 959,761 shares in the company, valued at approximately $124,624,965.85. This trade represents a 9.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.13% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Philip Morris International from $126.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $145.00 target price (up previously from $138.00) on shares of Philip Morris International in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $103.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $118.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $130.39.

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.