Holocene Advisors LP Acquires Shares of 657,030 Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Holocene Advisors LP acquired a new stake in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor acquired 657,030 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $79,763,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. White Lighthouse Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Philip Morris International by 71.4% during the 3rd quarter. White Lighthouse Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,999 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,457,000 after acquiring an additional 4,999 shares during the last quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. grew its stake in Philip Morris International by 3,553.3% in the third quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. now owns 206,959 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,125,000 after purchasing an additional 201,294 shares in the last quarter. Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new stake in Philip Morris International in the third quarter valued at $692,000. Swiss National Bank lifted 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 buying an additional 17,700 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 3.3% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 5,355,156 shares of the company’s stock valued at $650,116,000 after buying an additional 173,229 shares during the period. 78.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Philip Morris International Trading Down 0.0 %

Philip Morris International stock opened at $133.02 on Monday. 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 $206.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.12, a P/E/G ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 0.54. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $125.74 and a 200 day moving average of $115.99.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $1.91 EPS 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 business 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 earned $1.67 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.51 EPS for the current year.

Philip Morris International Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 26th were paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. This is a boost from Philip Morris International’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 26th. Philip Morris International’s payout ratio is presently 85.71%.

Insider Activity

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 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 101,918 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.85, for a total value of $13,234,052.30. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 959,761 shares in the company, valued at $124,624,965.85. The trade was a 9.60 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on PM. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $118.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Bank of America upped their price objective on Philip Morris International from $125.00 to $139.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of 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 shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on Philip Morris International from $118.50 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $131.50.

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.