Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. Takes Position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm acquired 235,432 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $28,581,000.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Philip Morris International by 684.4% in the second quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 251 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 219 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC bought a new position in shares of Philip Morris International during the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. Sachetta LLC increased its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 64.8% during the 2nd quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 267 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. raised its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 183 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its stake in Philip Morris International by 57.4% in the second quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 318 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Philip Morris International Stock Performance

NYSE PM opened at $130.39 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $202.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.54. Philip Morris International Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $87.82 and a fifty-two week high of $134.15. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $124.55 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $114.27.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $1.91 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.82 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $9.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.68 billion. Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 117.94% and a net margin of 10.35%. The firm’s revenue was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.67 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Philip Morris International Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 26th were given a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.14%. This is a boost from Philip Morris International’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 26th. Philip Morris International’s payout ratio is presently 85.71%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 101,918 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 959,761 shares in the company, valued at $124,624,965.85. This trade represents a 9.60 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Werner Barth sold 7,500 shares of Philip Morris International stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.98, for a total transaction of $974,850.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 95,418 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,402,431.64. This trade represents a 7.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on PM. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $126.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $125.00 to $139.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Philip Morris International from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Barclays boosted their target price on Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $155.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on Philip Morris International from $118.50 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $131.50.

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.