Griffin Asset Management Inc. Sells 3,368 Shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Griffin Asset Management Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 11.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 26,347 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,368 shares during the period. Griffin Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $2,414,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of PM. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its stake in Philip Morris International by 9.1% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 58,416,175 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,495,794,000 after purchasing an additional 4,869,272 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 12.6% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 27,821,802 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,575,742,000 after acquiring an additional 3,121,732 shares in the last quarter. Lone Pine Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Philip Morris International during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $282,785,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 25.5% in the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 10,439,154 shares of the company’s stock valued at $996,104,000 after purchasing an additional 2,123,311 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. lifted its position in Philip Morris International by 216.1% during the fourth quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,691,337 shares of the company’s stock valued at $159,121,000 after purchasing an additional 1,156,227 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Philip Morris International Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE PM traded down $0.24 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $101.33. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 7,299,472 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,042,973. The business’s 50 day moving average is $100.08 and its two-hundred day moving average is $94.93. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 12-month low of $87.23 and a 12-month high of $104.90. The firm has a market cap of $157.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 0.57.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $8.79 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.44 billion. Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 113.26% and a net margin of 8.58%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.38 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 21st will be paid a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 21st. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.13%. Philip Morris International’s payout ratio is 101.56%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PM has been the topic of several recent research reports. Stifel Nicolaus upped 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 report on Wednesday, April 24th. Argus restated a “hold” rating on shares of Philip Morris International in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $104.22.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Wilde Frederic De sold 20,000 shares of Philip Morris International stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.42, for a total value of $1,928,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 178,447 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,205,859.74. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

About Philip Morris International

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.