Inceptionr LLC Sells 14,272 Shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Inceptionr LLC decreased its position in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 80.2% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 3,515 shares of the company’s stock after selling 14,272 shares during the quarter. Inceptionr LLC’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $423,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Philip Morris International during the fourth quarter worth about $522,214,000. Dana Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Philip Morris International by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Dana Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 114,137 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,736,000 after purchasing an additional 2,517 shares during the period. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. lifted its position in Philip Morris International by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 275,224 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,123,000 after purchasing an additional 2,229 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its position in Philip Morris International by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 450,850 shares of the company’s stock worth $54,260,000 after purchasing an additional 5,121 shares during the period. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in Philip Morris International by 60.4% during the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,863 shares of the company’s stock worth $465,000 after purchasing an additional 1,455 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on PM shares. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. StockNews.com cut shares of Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of Philip Morris International in a report on Thursday, January 16th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 target price for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $144.56.

Insider Buying and Selling at Philip Morris International

In other Philip Morris International news, insider Lars Dahlgren sold 3,679 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.96, for a total transaction of $562,739.84. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 26,828 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,103,610.88. This represents a 12.06 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Reginaldo Dobrowolski sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.88, for a total transaction of $749,400.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 20,799 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,117,354.12. This represents a 19.38 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 131,822 shares of company stock valued at $19,655,585. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Philip Morris International Price Performance

Philip Morris International stock opened at $151.05 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $136.06 and a 200-day moving average of $129.07. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 1 year low of $87.82 and a 1 year high of $159.51. The company has a market capitalization of $234.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.49, a P/E/G ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.53.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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%. Equities analysts anticipate that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 EPS for the current year.

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 20th will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.57%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 20th. 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.