Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) Shares Acquired by Proficio Capital Partners LLC

Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 19,207.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 464,926 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 462,518 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $55,954,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in PM. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. boosted its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 457.5% during the third quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 223 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 183 shares during the period. Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 203.8% during the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 240 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 161 shares during the period. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Philip Morris International during the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in Philip Morris International during the fourth quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, Asset Dedication LLC raised its holdings in Philip Morris International by 55.5% during the fourth quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 412 shares of the company’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 147 shares in the last quarter. 78.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Werner Barth sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.67, for a total value of $1,486,700.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 106,244 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,795,295.48. This represents a 8.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Yann Guerin sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.28, for a total transaction of $378,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 30,308 shares in the company, valued at $4,584,994.24. This trade represents a 7.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 128,143 shares of company stock worth $19,092,846 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Philip Morris International Stock Performance

NYSE PM opened at $153.95 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $239.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.14, a P/E/G ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.55. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 1 year low of $87.82 and a 1 year high of $158.39. The business’s fifty day moving average is $132.28 and its two-hundred day moving average is $127.47.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.49 by $0.06. Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 120.08% and a net margin of 7.89%. On average, research analysts forecast that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Philip Morris International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 26th were issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 26th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.51%. Philip Morris International’s payout ratio is currently 119.73%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Philip Morris International from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on Philip Morris International in a report on Thursday, January 16th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $144.56.

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.