Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) Reaches New 52-Week High - Still a Buy?

Shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $161.99 and last traded at $159.40, with a volume of 1048145 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $156.17.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PM has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Philip Morris International in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $140.00 price target on the stock. Argus raised shares of Philip Morris International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $144.56.

Philip Morris International Stock Performance

The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $149.53 and a 200-day simple moving average of $133.57. The firm has a market cap of $233.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.30, a P/E/G ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.46.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Philip Morris International Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 20th will be given a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 20th. Philip Morris International's payout ratio is 119.73%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Philip Morris International

In other news, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 40,643 shares of the firm's 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 directly owns 561,349 shares of the company's stock, valued at $83,674,681.94. This trade represents a 6.75 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Werner Barth sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.67, for a total transaction of $1,486,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 106,244 shares in the company, valued at $15,795,295.48. This trade represents a 8.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 131,822 shares of company stock worth $19,655,585. Insiders own 0.13% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Philip Morris International

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of PM. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Philip Morris International by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 139,432,392 shares of the company's stock worth $16,780,688,000 after buying an additional 1,167,810 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors grew its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 122,584,210 shares of the company's stock worth $14,752,926,000 after acquiring an additional 4,216,586 shares during the period. GQG Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 14.3% during the 4th quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 48,746,809 shares of the company's stock worth $5,866,678,000 after acquiring an additional 6,092,558 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Philip Morris International by 9.9% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 35,286,582 shares of the company's stock worth $4,241,837,000 after acquiring an additional 3,185,258 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in Philip Morris International by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 17,276,790 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,079,262,000 after acquiring an additional 516,617 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.63% of the company's stock.

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.