Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) Shares Sold by Searle & CO.

Searle & CO. cut its stake in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 56,870 shares of the company’s stock after selling 324 shares during the period. Philip Morris International makes up approximately 1.7% of Searle & CO.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest position. Searle & CO.’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $6,904,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Diversify Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Philip Morris International in the first quarter valued at $5,634,000. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 25.4% in the 1st quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 34,390 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,151,000 after purchasing an additional 6,974 shares during the period. Duality Advisers LP lifted its stake in Philip Morris International by 165.6% during the first quarter. Duality Advisers LP now owns 38,644 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,541,000 after buying an additional 24,093 shares in the last quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board increased its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 11.5% in the first quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board now owns 90,111 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,465,000 after acquiring an additional 9,300 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 17.9% in the 2nd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 31,591 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,203,000 after acquiring an additional 4,793 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on PM shares. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Philip Morris International from $126.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on Philip Morris International from $118.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $105.00 to $103.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $118.50 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $123.95.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Wilde Frederic De sold 20,000 shares of Philip Morris International stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.01, for a total transaction of $2,260,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 158,447 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,906,095.47. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, insider Massimo Andolina sold 9,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.35, for a total value of $1,038,150.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 85,629 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,877,305.15. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Wilde Frederic De sold 20,000 shares of Philip Morris International stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.01, for a total transaction of $2,260,200.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 158,447 shares in the company, valued at $17,906,095.47. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Philip Morris International Stock Performance

PM traded down $0.42 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $130.99. 1,887,810 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,350,104. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $121.68 and its 200-day moving average price is $109.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $203.63 billion, a PE ratio of 25.67, a P/E/G ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.55. Philip Morris International Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $87.23 and a fifty-two week high of $131.97.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $1.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.82 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $9.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.68 billion. Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 113.32% and a net margin of 9.41%. Philip Morris International’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.67 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.45 earnings per share 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 paid a $1.35 dividend. This is a boost from Philip Morris International’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 26th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.12%. Philip Morris International’s payout ratio is presently 105.47%.

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.