Cedar Wealth Management LLC Lowers Holdings in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Cedar Wealth Management LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 3.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 140,266 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,558 shares during the period. Philip Morris International comprises approximately 6.1% of Cedar Wealth Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 6th largest position. Cedar Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $16,881,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of PM. Range Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in Philip Morris International by 504.9% during the fourth quarter. Range Financial Group LLC now owns 22,915 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,758,000 after buying 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 boosted its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 37.5% in 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 grew its holdings in Philip Morris International by 50.9% in the fourth quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 53,884 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,485,000 after purchasing an additional 18,183 shares during 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 owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Philip Morris International Price Performance

Shares of Philip Morris International stock opened at $151.25 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $235.16 billion, a PE ratio of 33.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.53. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $142.37 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $131.18. 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 released its 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%. Analysts predict that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 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 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.57%. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio is currently 119.73%.

Insider Activity

In other Philip Morris International news, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 40,643 shares of Philip Morris International stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.06, for a total transaction of $6,058,245.58. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 561,349 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $83,674,681.94. This trade represents a 6.75 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Reginaldo Dobrowolski sold 5,000 shares of Philip Morris International stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.88, for a total transaction of $749,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 20,799 shares in the company, valued at $3,117,354.12. This trade represents a 19.38 % 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.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on PM. Argus upgraded shares of Philip Morris International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. StockNews.com cut shares of Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Philip Morris International in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Philip Morris International presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $144.56.

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.