Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. Buys 6,585 Shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. boosted its holdings in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 3.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 185,919 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,585 shares during the quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc.’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $22,375,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Range Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Philip Morris International by 504.9% during the 4th quarter. Range Financial Group LLC now owns 22,915 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,758,000 after acquiring an additional 19,127 shares during the period. Park Avenue Securities LLC raised its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 18.9% in the 4th quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 100,826 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,134,000 after acquiring an additional 16,035 shares in the last quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC increased its position in Philip Morris International by 37.5% during the 4th quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 24,200 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,912,000 after buying an additional 6,605 shares in the last quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management increased its position in Philip Morris International by 50.9% during the 4th quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 53,884 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,485,000 after buying an additional 18,183 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group increased its position in Philip Morris International by 182.4% during the 3rd quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 6,815 shares of the company’s stock valued at $827,000 after buying an additional 4,402 shares in the last quarter. 78.63% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Philip Morris International

In other Philip Morris International news, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 40,643 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the chairman now directly 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 document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Lars Dahlgren sold 3,679 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.96, for a total transaction of $562,739.84. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 26,828 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,103,610.88. The trade was a 12.06 % 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 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Philip Morris International Stock Down 1.4 %

Philip Morris International stock opened at $152.12 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $141.69 and a two-hundred day moving average of $130.95. The firm has a market cap of $236.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.73, a P/E/G ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.53. Philip Morris International Inc. has a twelve month low of $87.82 and a twelve month high of $159.51.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last issued its quarterly 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%. Equities analysts expect that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Philip Morris International Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on PM. Barclays lifted their target price 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 target on Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. UBS Group raised their price target on Philip Morris International from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Philip Morris International in a report on Thursday, January 16th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Argus raised Philip Morris International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus 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.