Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky Sells 16,991 Shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky lessened its position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM - Free Report) by 5.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 291,492 shares of the company's stock after selling 16,991 shares during the period. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky's holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $35,080,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. NewSquare Capital LLC increased its holdings in Philip Morris International by 53.7% during the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 206 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Philip Morris International during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Knuff & Co LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Philip Morris International in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in shares of Philip Morris International in the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Finally, Transce3nd LLC bought a new stake in shares of Philip Morris International in the fourth quarter worth $41,000. 78.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Lars Dahlgren sold 3,679 shares of the company'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 completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 26,828 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,103,610.88. This represents a 12.06 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Yann Guerin sold 2,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.28, for a total value of $378,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 30,308 shares in the company, valued at $4,584,994.24. The trade was a 7.62 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 131,822 shares of company stock valued at $19,655,585. 0.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Philip Morris International Price Performance

PM stock traded up $0.12 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $170.19. 7,755,663 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,566,443. Philip Morris International Inc. has a one year low of $94.42 and a one year high of $171.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $264.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.46. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $155.09 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $137.22.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.69 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $9.30 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.10 billion. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 7.89% and a negative return on equity of 120.08%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.50 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 20th were given a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.17%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 20th. Philip Morris International's payout ratio is 111.34%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on PM shares. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. UBS Group upgraded Philip Morris International from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their price target for the company from $130.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective 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. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $163.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Argus raised shares of Philip Morris International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $163.00.

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.