Blair William & Co. IL Sells 2,336 Shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Blair William & Co. IL cut its holdings in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM - Free Report) by 1.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 193,574 shares of the company's stock after selling 2,336 shares during the period. Blair William & Co. IL's holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $23,297,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in PM. Range Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 504.9% during the 4th quarter. Range Financial Group LLC now owns 22,915 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,758,000 after purchasing an additional 19,127 shares during the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC raised its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 18.9% during the fourth quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 100,826 shares of the company's stock worth $12,134,000 after acquiring an additional 16,035 shares in the last quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC raised its position in Philip Morris International by 37.5% in the 4th quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 24,200 shares of the company's stock worth $2,912,000 after purchasing an additional 6,605 shares during the period. Ritholtz Wealth Management lifted its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 50.9% in the 4th quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 53,884 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,485,000 after acquiring an additional 18,183 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Czech National Bank lifted its position in Philip Morris International by 6.4% in the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 337,119 shares of the company's stock valued at $40,572,000 after purchasing an additional 20,390 shares during the last quarter. 78.63% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Insider Activity at Philip Morris International

In other news, insider Lars Dahlgren sold 3,679 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.96, for a total transaction of $562,739.84. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 26,828 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,103,610.88. This trade represents a 12.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Yann Guerin sold 2,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 30,308 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $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 have sold a total of 131,822 shares of company stock valued at $19,655,585 over the last 90 days. 0.13% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Philip Morris International Trading Down 0.4 %

PM traded down $0.61 on Tuesday, hitting $158.12. 1,311,308 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,014,968. Philip Morris International Inc. has a one year low of $87.82 and a one year high of $159.51. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $146.57 and its 200-day simple moving average is $132.43. The firm has a market cap of $245.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.06, a P/E/G ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.53.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly 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 net margin of 7.89% and a negative return on equity of 120.08%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 20th will be given a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 20th. Philip Morris International's dividend payout ratio is presently 119.73%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PM has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Argus raised shares of Philip Morris International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on Philip Morris International in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $140.00 target price on the stock. Barclays raised their target price on Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Philip Morris International from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $144.56.

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.