Natixis Advisors LLC Buys 110,360 Shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Natixis Advisors LLC raised its stake in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM - Free Report) by 12.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,014,452 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 110,360 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC owned about 0.07% of Philip Morris International worth $123,155,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in PM. GQG Partners LLC grew 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 purchasing an additional 5,841,696 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in Philip Morris International by 79.3% during the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,878,158 shares of the company's stock valued at $595,634,000 after acquiring an additional 2,599,684 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in Philip Morris International by 16.3% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 13,234,478 shares of the company's stock worth $1,341,050,000 after acquiring an additional 1,856,551 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors increased its stake in Philip Morris International by 3.1% in the 1st quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 60,217,039 shares of the company's stock worth $5,517,085,000 after purchasing an additional 1,800,864 shares during the period. Finally, Capital World Investors lifted its position in Philip Morris International by 1.5% in the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 111,247,656 shares of the company's stock valued at $10,192,510,000 after purchasing an additional 1,684,992 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.63% of the company's stock.

Philip Morris International Stock Performance

Shares of PM traded up $0.39 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $128.59. The company had a trading volume of 9,066,012 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,415,458. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $124.30 and a 200 day moving average price of $113.44. The company has a market capitalization of $199.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.54. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 52 week low of $87.82 and a 52 week high of $134.15.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $1.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.82 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $9.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 revenue was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.67 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 26th were given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 26th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.20%. This is an increase from Philip Morris International's previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Philip Morris International's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 85.71%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PM has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $125.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Philip Morris International from $126.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Barclays upped their target price on Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $155.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $118.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $127.85.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 101,918 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.85, for a total transaction of $13,234,052.30. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 959,761 shares of the company's stock, valued at $124,624,965.85. This trade represents a 9.60 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Werner Barth sold 7,500 shares of the 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 owns 95,418 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,402,431.64. This trade represents a 7.29 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.13% of the stock is owned by company 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.