Primecap Management Co. CA Reduces Position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Primecap Management Co. CA lessened its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 7.5% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 63,800 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,200 shares during the quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $7,745,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. White Lighthouse Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Philip Morris International by 71.4% in the 3rd quarter. White Lighthouse Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,999 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,457,000 after buying an additional 4,999 shares during the period. Accredited Investors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 3,553.3% during the third quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. now owns 206,959 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,125,000 after acquiring an additional 201,294 shares in the last quarter. Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new position in shares of Philip Morris International in the third quarter worth $692,000. Swiss National Bank grew its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 0.4% in the third quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 4,614,200 shares of the company’s stock valued at $560,164,000 after purchasing an additional 17,700 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Axxcess Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 16.9% in the third quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 40,377 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,902,000 after purchasing an additional 5,846 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Werner Barth sold 7,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.98, for a total value of $974,850.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 95,418 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,402,431.64. This trade represents a 7.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 101,918 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.85, for a total transaction of $13,234,052.30. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 959,761 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $124,624,965.85. This 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 corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on Philip Morris International from $118.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $145.00 price objective (up previously from $138.00) on shares of Philip Morris International in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. UBS Group raised their price target 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, Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $125.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. 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’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $131.50.

Philip Morris International Stock Down 0.9 %

NYSE PM opened at $129.99 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $124.77 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $114.62. Philip Morris International Inc. has a twelve month low of $87.82 and a twelve month high of $134.15. The company has a market capitalization of $202.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.63, a PEG ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.54.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $1.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.82 by $0.09. Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 117.94% and a net margin of 10.35%. The company had revenue of $9.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.68 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.67 EPS. Philip Morris International’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 26th were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 26th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.15%. This is a positive change from Philip Morris International’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 85.71%.

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.