World Investment Advisors Boosts Stake in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

World Investment Advisors increased its position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM - Free Report) by 28.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 64,985 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 14,313 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors' holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $7,821,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in PM. Edgestream Partners L.P. raised its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 144.5% during the third quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 13,172 shares of the company's stock worth $1,599,000 after purchasing an additional 7,784 shares during the period. Erste Asset Management GmbH acquired a new position in Philip Morris International during the third quarter worth $1,077,000. Benjamin Edwards Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 337.3% in the third quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 44,814 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,441,000 after buying an additional 34,565 shares in the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 3.7% during the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 1,004,018 shares of the company's stock valued at $121,798,000 after buying an additional 36,237 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 604.8% during the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 465,443 shares of the company's stock worth $56,503,000 after acquiring an additional 399,400 shares in the last quarter. 78.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Insider Activity

In other news, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 40,643 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chairman now directly owns 561,349 shares in the company, valued at $83,674,681.94. This represents a 6.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Yann Guerin sold 2,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $151.28, for a total transaction of $378,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 30,308 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,584,994.24. This trade represents a 7.62 % 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 valued at $19,655,585 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company's stock.

Philip Morris International Trading Down 7.2 %

Shares of PM stock traded down $11.60 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $150.47. 11,946,492 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,521,053. The stock has a market capitalization of $234.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.46. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $149.12 and a 200 day simple moving average of $133.20. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 52-week low of $87.82 and a 52-week high of $163.08.

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

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PM has been the topic of several recent research reports. 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 research report on Friday, February 7th. Barclays upped their price target on Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Philip Morris International from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $144.56.

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.