FIL Ltd Increases Stock Position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

FIL Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM - Free Report) by 52.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 394,353 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 135,007 shares during the quarter. FIL Ltd's holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $47,460,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

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Insider Activity at Philip Morris International

In related news, insider Lars Dahlgren sold 3,679 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The shares were 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 $4,103,610.88. The trade was a 12.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Reginaldo Dobrowolski sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.88, for a total transaction of $749,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 20,799 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,117,354.12. This trade represents a 19.38 % 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 worth $19,655,585 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.14% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on PM. Barclays lifted their target price on Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of Philip Morris International in a report on Thursday, January 16th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $140.00 price target on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Philip Morris International from $160.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Philip Morris International from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $145.44.

Philip Morris International Stock Performance

PM traded up $2.68 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $153.85. The stock had a trading volume of 6,458,822 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,569,399. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 1 year low of $87.82 and a 1 year high of $163.08. The business has a fifty day moving average of $152.03 and a 200 day moving average of $134.63. The company has a market cap of $239.47 billion, a P/E 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 announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.55 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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, equities research analysts anticipate that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 20th were paid a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 20th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.51%. Philip Morris International's payout ratio is presently 119.73%.

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.