Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) Hits New 1-Year High Following Analyst Upgrade

Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) shares reached a new 52-week high on Thursday after JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on the stock from $125.00 to $145.00. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Philip Morris International traded as high as $132.45 and last traded at $132.45, with a volume of 122916 shares. The stock had previously closed at $131.41.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Philip Morris International from $118.50 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $125.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $103.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Philip Morris International from $126.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Philip Morris International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $126.85.

Insider Activity at Philip Morris International

In related news, insider Werner Barth sold 7,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 directly owns 95,418 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,402,431.64. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Philip Morris International news, insider Werner Barth sold 7,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 95,418 shares in the company, valued at $12,402,431.64. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Massimo Andolina sold 9,000 shares of Philip Morris International stock in a transaction dated 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 trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 118,418 shares of company stock valued at $15,247,052 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Philip Morris International

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of PM. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Philip Morris International by 684.4% during the 2nd quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 251 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 219 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC bought a new position in Philip Morris International during the second quarter worth about $25,000. Sachetta LLC raised its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 64.8% during the second quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 267 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the period. Fortitude Family Office LLC raised its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 57.4% in the 2nd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 318 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares during the period. Finally, Olistico Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Philip Morris International during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Institutional investors own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Philip Morris International Stock Down 2.2 %

The company’s fifty day moving average is $122.26 and its 200 day moving average is $109.44. The firm has a market cap of $201.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.36, a PEG ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.55.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $1.91 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.82 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $9.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.68 billion. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 12.10% and a negative return on equity of 117.94%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.67 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 26th were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This is a positive change from Philip Morris International’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 26th. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio is 105.47%.

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.