GLOBALT Investments LLC GA Sells 169 Shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

GLOBALT Investments LLC GA lowered its stake in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 0.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 24,150 shares of the company’s stock after selling 169 shares during the quarter. GLOBALT Investments LLC GA’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $2,906,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Range Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 504.9% in the fourth quarter. Range Financial Group LLC now owns 22,915 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,758,000 after purchasing an additional 19,127 shares during the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC raised its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 18.9% in the fourth quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 100,826 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,134,000 after purchasing an additional 16,035 shares during the last quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 37.5% in the fourth quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 24,200 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,912,000 after purchasing an additional 6,605 shares during the last quarter. Swiss National Bank raised its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 0.4% in the third quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 4,614,200 shares of the company’s stock valued at $560,164,000 after purchasing an additional 17,700 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ritholtz Wealth Management raised its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 50.9% in the fourth quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 53,884 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,485,000 after purchasing an additional 18,183 shares during the last quarter. 78.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 40,643 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.06, for a total value of $6,058,245.58. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 561,349 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $83,674,681.94. This represents a 6.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Jacek Olczak sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.87, for a total transaction of $5,954,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 547,426 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $81,495,308.62. This trade represents a 6.81 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 131,822 shares of company stock valued at $19,655,585 over the last quarter. 0.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Philip Morris International Stock Performance

Shares of Philip Morris International stock opened at $151.95 on Monday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $139.10 and a 200-day moving average of $130.19. The stock has a market cap of $236.26 billion, a PE ratio of 33.69, a PEG ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.53. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 52-week low of $87.82 and a 52-week high of $159.51.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.49 by $0.06. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 7.89% and a negative return on equity of 120.08%. Equities research analysts predict that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 20th will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 20th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.55%. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio is 119.73%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on PM shares. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Philip Morris International in a report on Thursday, January 16th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 price objective on the stock. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Argus upgraded shares of Philip Morris International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $144.56.

Philip Morris International 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.