Fiduciary Group LLC Cuts Holdings in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Fiduciary Group LLC lessened its stake in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 3.0% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 11,290 shares of the company’s stock after selling 348 shares during the period. Fiduciary Group LLC’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $1,144,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Hardin Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in Philip Morris International in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $284,000. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 39.6% in the 2nd quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 22,490 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,279,000 after acquiring an additional 6,378 shares during the last quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale lifted its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 5.6% in the 2nd quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 2,490,731 shares of the company’s stock worth $254,196,000 after acquiring an additional 131,503 shares during the last quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 76,026 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,704,000 after acquiring an additional 889 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Main Street Financial Solutions LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 7.6% in the 2nd quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 6,325 shares of the company’s stock worth $641,000 after acquiring an additional 446 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Philip Morris International

In other Philip Morris International news, insider Massimo Andolina sold 9,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.35, for a total transaction of $1,038,150.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 85,629 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,877,305.15. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Massimo Andolina sold 9,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.35, for a total value of $1,038,150.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 85,629 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,877,305.15. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Wilde Frederic De sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.01, for a total transaction of $2,260,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 158,447 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,906,095.47. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $95.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $125.00 to $139.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $120.00 to $138.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $117.05.

Philip Morris International Price Performance

NYSE:PM opened at $125.63 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $116.31 and its 200-day moving average price is $103.45. The company has a market capitalization of $195.30 billion, a PE ratio of 24.54, a P/E/G ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.55. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 1-year low of $87.23 and a 1-year high of $128.22.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 23rd. The company reported $1.59 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.57 by $0.02. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 9.41% and a negative return on equity of 113.32%. The company had revenue of $9.47 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.19 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.60 EPS. Philip Morris International’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 26th will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.30%. This is an increase from Philip Morris International’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 26th. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio is 101.56%.

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.