ING Groep NV Acquires 155,055 Shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

ING Groep NV increased its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 34.5% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 604,533 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 155,055 shares during the quarter. ING Groep NV’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $73,390,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. GQG Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 5,006.0% during the 1st quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 5,958,391 shares of the company’s stock valued at $545,908,000 after buying an additional 5,841,696 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its position in Philip Morris International by 79.3% in the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,878,158 shares of the company’s stock worth $595,634,000 after buying an additional 2,599,684 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 16.3% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 13,234,478 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,341,050,000 after buying an additional 1,856,551 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors raised its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 3.1% in the first quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 60,217,039 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,517,085,000 after buying an additional 1,800,864 shares during the period. Finally, Capital World Investors raised its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 1.5% in the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 111,247,656 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,192,510,000 after buying an additional 1,684,992 shares during the period. 78.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Philip Morris International

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 0.00 % 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. In other news, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 101,918 shares of the business’s 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 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 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 value of $974,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 95,418 shares in the company, valued at $12,402,431.64. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Philip Morris International Price Performance

Shares of PM traded up $1.47 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $126.71. The stock had a trading volume of 1,826,876 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,376,204. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $124.19 and its 200 day moving average is $113.11. The firm has a market cap of $197.01 billion, a PE ratio of 19.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.54. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 1 year low of $87.82 and a 1 year high of $134.15.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $1.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.82 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $9.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.68 billion. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 10.35% and a negative return on equity of 117.94%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.67 earnings per share. As a group, equities research 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 business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 26th were paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. This is a positive change from Philip Morris International’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.26%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 26th. Philip Morris International’s payout ratio is currently 85.71%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PM has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $145.00 price objective (up from $138.00) on shares of Philip Morris International in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Philip Morris International from $126.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped 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. Bank of America lifted their price objective 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. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Philip Morris International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $127.85.

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.