West Coast Financial LLC Sells 275 Shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

West Coast Financial LLC reduced its position in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 7.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,655 shares of the company’s stock after selling 275 shares during the period. West Coast Financial LLC’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $335,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Capital Research Global Investors raised its position in Philip Morris International by 9.1% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 58,416,175 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,495,794,000 after acquiring an additional 4,869,272 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in Philip Morris International by 12.6% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 27,821,802 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,575,742,000 after acquiring an additional 3,121,732 shares during the period. Lone Pine Capital LLC bought a new stake in Philip Morris International in the fourth quarter worth about $282,785,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its position in Philip Morris International by 25.5% in the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 10,439,154 shares of the company’s stock worth $996,104,000 after acquiring an additional 2,123,311 shares during the period. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. raised its position in Philip Morris International by 216.1% in the fourth quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,691,337 shares of the company’s stock worth $159,121,000 after acquiring an additional 1,156,227 shares during the period. 78.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Philip Morris International Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:PM opened at $102.05 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $99.49 and a 200 day moving average of $94.77. The stock has a market cap of $158.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.93, a P/E/G ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 0.57. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 12 month low of $87.23 and a 12 month high of $104.90.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $8.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.44 billion. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 8.58% and a negative return on equity of 113.26%. Philip Morris International’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.38 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 8th. Investors of record on Friday, June 21st will be paid a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 21st. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.10%. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio is currently 101.56%.

Insider Activity at Philip Morris International

In other Philip Morris International news, insider Wilde Frederic De sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.42, for a total value of $1,928,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 178,447 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,205,859.74. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.14% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Argus reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Philip Morris International in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $108.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $104.22.

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.