Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) Shares Purchased by Benjamin Edwards Inc.

Benjamin Edwards Inc. raised its position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 9.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,079 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 617 shares during the quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc.’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $666,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. West Family Investments Inc. acquired a new position in Philip Morris International in the 4th quarter valued at about $285,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 64.6% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 19,910 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,873,000 after purchasing an additional 7,815 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 48.8% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 13,603 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,280,000 after purchasing an additional 4,459 shares during the period. Summit Financial LLC grew its position in Philip Morris International by 8.7% in the 4th quarter. Summit Financial LLC now owns 6,054 shares of the company’s stock valued at $577,000 after buying an additional 482 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Essex Financial Services Inc. increased its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc. now owns 20,513 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,930,000 after acquiring an additional 282 shares during the period. 78.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Philip Morris International Trading Up 0.1 %

NYSE PM traded up $0.09 on Friday, hitting $97.40. 4,890,291 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,759,192. The company has a market capitalization of $151.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.60. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $92.36 and a 200 day moving average of $92.28. Philip Morris International Inc. has a twelve month low of $87.23 and a twelve month high of $100.70.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $8.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.44 billion. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 8.58% and a negative return on equity of 113.26%. Philip Morris International’s revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.38 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 9th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 21st were paid a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 20th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.34%. Philip Morris International’s payout ratio is 101.56%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group downgraded Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $105.00 to $86.50 in a research note on Tuesday, January 23rd. Argus reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Philip Morris International in a report on Tuesday, March 5th. Societe Generale raised Philip Morris International from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $87.50 price objective on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 13th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $108.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Philip Morris International presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $105.50.

Insider Activity at Philip Morris International

In other news, VP Reginaldo Dobrowolski sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.69, for a total value of $181,380.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 9,726 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $882,050.94. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, insider Wilde Frederic De sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.42, for a total transaction of $1,928,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 178,447 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,205,859.74. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Reginaldo Dobrowolski sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.69, for a total transaction of $181,380.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 9,726 shares in the company, valued at $882,050.94. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 35,250 shares of company stock worth $3,339,528 over the last ninety days. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.