Xponance Inc. Boosts Stock Position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Xponance Inc. lifted its position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 1.2% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 186,803 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,125 shares during the quarter. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $18,929,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of PM. GQG Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Philip Morris International by 5,006.0% during the 1st quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 5,958,391 shares of the company’s stock valued at $545,908,000 after acquiring an additional 5,841,696 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its holdings in Philip Morris International by 9.1% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 58,416,175 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,495,794,000 after acquiring an additional 4,869,272 shares during the period. Lone Pine Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Philip Morris International during the 4th quarter valued at about $282,785,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in Philip Morris International by 79.3% during the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,878,158 shares of the company’s stock valued at $595,634,000 after acquiring an additional 2,599,684 shares during the period. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its holdings in Philip Morris International by 5,045.1% during the 1st quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 2,122,729 shares of the company’s stock valued at $194,484,000 after acquiring an additional 2,081,472 shares during the period. 78.63% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on PM. StockNews.com upgraded Philip Morris International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Philip Morris International from $120.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Philip Morris International from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on Philip Morris International from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on Philip Morris International from $95.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $117.05.

Philip Morris International Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:PM opened at $120.79 on Monday. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 52-week low of $87.23 and a 52-week high of $128.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $187.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.59, a P/E/G ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.55. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $118.17 and a 200-day moving average price of $104.76.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 23rd. The company reported $1.59 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.57 by $0.02. Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 113.32% and a net margin of 9.41%. The company had revenue of $9.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.19 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.60 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 26th will be paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.47%. This is an increase from Philip Morris International’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 26th. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 105.47%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Philip Morris International

In other Philip Morris International news, insider Wilde Frederic De sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.01, for a total transaction of $2,260,200.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 158,447 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,906,095.47. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, insider Wilde Frederic De sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.01, for a total value of $2,260,200.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 158,447 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,906,095.47. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Massimo Andolina sold 9,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.35, for a total value of $1,038,150.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 85,629 shares in the company, valued at $9,877,305.15. 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.