Retirement Systems of Alabama Has $94.69 Million Stake in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Retirement Systems of Alabama decreased its stake in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM - Free Report) by 5.5% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 779,967 shares of the company's stock after selling 45,789 shares during the quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama owned 0.05% of Philip Morris International worth $94,688,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. American Trust purchased a new position in shares of Philip Morris International in the third quarter worth approximately $214,000. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in Philip Morris International by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 13,000,570 shares of the company's stock worth $1,560,752,000 after purchasing an additional 376,406 shares during the period. Synovus Financial Corp grew its position in Philip Morris International by 15.9% during the 3rd quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 92,177 shares of the company's stock worth $11,190,000 after purchasing an additional 12,670 shares in the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC raised its stake in Philip Morris International by 56.9% during the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 175,960 shares of the company's stock valued at $21,362,000 after purchasing an additional 63,828 shares during the period. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB lifted its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 94.2% in the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 60,413 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,334,000 after purchasing an additional 29,310 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.63% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on PM. Bank of America lifted their price target on Philip Morris International from $125.00 to $139.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Philip Morris International from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $103.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reissued a "buy" rating and set a $145.00 target price (up previously from $138.00) on shares of Philip Morris International in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Philip Morris International presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $131.50.

Philip Morris International Trading Down 0.3 %

NYSE PM traded down $0.38 during trading on Friday, hitting $126.62. 3,233,104 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,347,094. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 12 month low of $87.82 and a 12 month high of $134.15. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $127.35 and a 200 day simple moving average of $117.60. The company has a market capitalization of $196.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.12, a PEG ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 0.53.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $1.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.82 by $0.09. Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 117.94% and a net margin of 10.35%. The firm had revenue of $9.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.68 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.67 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 26th will be issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 26th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.26%. Philip Morris International's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 85.71%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Werner Barth sold 7,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.98, for a total transaction of $974,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 95,418 shares in the company, valued at $12,402,431.64. The trade was a 7.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 101,918 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.85, for a total transaction of $13,234,052.30. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 959,761 shares in the company, valued at approximately $124,624,965.85. The trade was a 9.60 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company's stock.

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.