State of Michigan Retirement System Boosts Holdings in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

State of Michigan Retirement System raised its stake in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 0.1% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 425,358 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $38,971,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners purchased a new position in Philip Morris International during the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Northwest Financial Advisors purchased a new position in shares of Philip Morris International in the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Philip Morris International in the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Philip Morris International in the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, Quarry LP lifted its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 307.5% in the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 436 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 329 shares in the last quarter. 78.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Philip Morris International Trading Up 0.4 %

PM stock traded up $0.39 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $101.64. 2,898,444 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,461,180. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $100.22 and a 200-day moving average price of $94.99. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 1 year low of $87.23 and a 1 year high of $104.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $158.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.82, a P/E/G ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 0.58.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.09. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 8.58% and a negative return on equity of 113.26%. The business had revenue of $8.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.44 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.38 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.32 EPS for the current year.

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 21st will be given a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.12%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 21st. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio is presently 101.56%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on PM. Argus reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Philip Morris International in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $108.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $104.22.

Insider Buying and Selling at Philip Morris International

In other Philip Morris International news, insider Wilde Frederic De sold 20,000 shares of Philip Morris International stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.42, for a total transaction of $1,928,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 178,447 shares in the company, valued at $17,205,859.74. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.14% 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.