Optas LLC Takes $268,000 Position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Optas LLC acquired a new stake in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm acquired 2,208 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $268,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Philip Morris International by 25.4% during the 1st quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 34,390 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,151,000 after buying an additional 6,974 shares during the last quarter. Duality Advisers LP grew its stake in Philip Morris International by 165.6% during the 1st quarter. Duality Advisers LP now owns 38,644 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,541,000 after buying an additional 24,093 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its stake in Philip Morris International by 17.9% during the 2nd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 31,591 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,203,000 after buying an additional 4,793 shares during the last quarter. Burke & Herbert Bank & Trust Co. grew its stake in Philip Morris International by 68.0% during the 2nd quarter. Burke & Herbert Bank & Trust Co. now owns 20,896 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,117,000 after buying an additional 8,455 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gabelli Funds LLC grew its stake in Philip Morris International by 2.5% during the 2nd quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC now owns 289,350 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,320,000 after buying an additional 7,000 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Philip Morris International Price Performance

PM opened at $130.65 on Monday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $123.70 and a 200-day simple moving average of $111.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $203.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.74, a P/E/G ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 0.54. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 12 month low of $87.82 and a 12 month high of $134.15.

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 the consensus estimate of $1.82 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $9.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.68 billion. Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 117.94% and a net margin of 10.35%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.67 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.51 EPS for the current year.

Philip Morris International Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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 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 4.13%. Philip Morris International’s payout ratio is currently 85.71%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on PM shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Philip Morris International from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Citigroup lifted their target price on Philip Morris International from $118.50 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. UBS Group lifted their target price on Philip Morris International from $103.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Bank of America lifted their target price 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. Finally, 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $127.85.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 101,918 shares of Philip Morris International stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.85, for a total transaction of $13,234,052.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 959,761 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $124,624,965.85. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Philip Morris International news, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 101,918 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.85, for a total transaction of $13,234,052.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 959,761 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $124,624,965.85. 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 accessible through this link. Also, insider Massimo Andolina sold 9,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 85,629 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,877,305.15. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 118,418 shares of company stock valued at $15,247,052. 0.13% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.