Stephens Inc. AR Reduces Holdings in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Stephens Inc. AR lowered its stake in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 10.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 42,792 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,941 shares during the quarter. Stephens Inc. AR’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $5,150,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Investment Advisory Services Inc. TX ADV lifted its holdings in Philip Morris International by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Investment Advisory Services Inc. TX ADV now owns 2,510 shares of the company’s stock valued at $302,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the period. Intergy Private Wealth LLC lifted its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. Intergy Private Wealth LLC now owns 1,959 shares of the company’s stock valued at $236,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the period. 49 Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Philip Morris International by 3.6% during the third quarter. 49 Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,432 shares of the company’s stock worth $295,000 after buying an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. Woodmont Investment Counsel LLC grew its position in Philip Morris International by 1.6% during the third quarter. Woodmont Investment Counsel LLC now owns 5,452 shares of the company’s stock worth $662,000 after buying an additional 86 shares during the period. Finally, Sargent Investment Group LLC increased its holdings in Philip Morris International by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Sargent Investment Group LLC now owns 3,972 shares of the company’s stock valued at $467,000 after buying an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. 78.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on PM. Barclays lowered their price target on Philip Morris International from $155.00 to $145.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. StockNews.com cut Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Philip Morris International in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 price target on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $134.35.

Philip Morris International Price Performance

Shares of PM stock opened at $146.58 on Tuesday. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 1-year low of $87.82 and a 1-year high of $146.78. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $125.66 and its 200-day simple moving average is $124.06. The firm has a market cap of $227.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.50, a PEG ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.55.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.49 by $0.06. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 9.24% and a negative return on equity of 120.08%. Analysts expect that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 26th were paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 26th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.68%. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio is presently 119.73%.

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.