Wedge Capital Management L L P NC Decreases Holdings in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Wedge Capital Management L L P NC lessened its stake in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM - Free Report) by 7.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 234,588 shares of the company's stock after selling 19,052 shares during the period. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC's holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $28,233,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. boosted its position in Philip Morris International by 457.5% in the third quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 223 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 183 shares during the last quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC lifted its stake in Philip Morris International by 203.8% during the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 240 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 161 shares during the period. Concord Wealth Partners boosted its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 2,709.1% in the 3rd quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 309 shares of the company's stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 298 shares during the last quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Philip Morris International in the third quarter worth $54,000. Finally, Reston Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Philip Morris International during the third quarter worth $58,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.63% of the company's stock.

Philip Morris International Trading Up 1.7 %

PM stock traded up $2.08 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $121.88. 5,165,969 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,837,312. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 1-year low of $87.82 and a 1-year high of $134.15. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $125.50 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $121.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $189.51 billion, a PE ratio of 19.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.54.

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

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 26th were issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 26th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.43%. Philip Morris International's payout ratio is 85.71%.

Insider Transactions at Philip Morris International

In related news, insider Werner Barth sold 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the insider now owns 95,418 shares in the company, valued at $12,402,431.64. This represents a 7.29 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 101,918 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.85, for a total value of $13,234,052.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 959,761 shares in the company, valued at $124,624,965.85. This trade represents a 9.60 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.14% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Barclays lowered their price objective on Philip Morris International from $155.00 to $145.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $118.50 to $132.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $103.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $118.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Philip Morris International from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $131.35.

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.