Bessemer Group Inc. Sells 282,974 Shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Bessemer Group Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM - Free Report) by 16.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,444,147 shares of the company's stock after selling 282,974 shares during the quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. owned 0.09% of Philip Morris International worth $173,803,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in PM. NewSquare Capital LLC lifted its position in Philip Morris International by 53.7% during the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 206 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Philip Morris International during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Knuff & Co LLC purchased a new position in shares of Philip Morris International in the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in Philip Morris International during the 4th quarter worth $37,000. Finally, Truvestments Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Philip Morris International by 113.8% in the 4th quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 357 shares of the company's stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.63% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Argus raised Philip Morris International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. StockNews.com cut shares of Philip Morris International from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Morgan Stanley started coverage on Philip Morris International in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $140.00 target price for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Philip Morris International presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $145.44.

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Insider Activity

In related news, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 40,643 shares of Philip Morris International stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.06, for a total transaction of $6,058,245.58. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 561,349 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $83,674,681.94. This trade represents a 6.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Reginaldo Dobrowolski sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.88, for a total value of $749,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 20,799 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,117,354.12. The trade was a 19.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 131,822 shares of company stock worth $19,655,585. 0.14% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Philip Morris International Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:PM traded up $2.68 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $153.85. 6,458,822 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,569,399. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $152.03 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $134.63. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 52 week low of $87.82 and a 52 week high of $163.08. The company has a market cap of $239.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.46.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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, analysts anticipate that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 20th were issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 20th. 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%.

Philip Morris International Company 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.