New York Life Investment Management LLC Raises Position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

New York Life Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 0.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 203,170 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,749 shares during the period. New York Life Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $24,452,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. White Lighthouse Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 71.4% in the 3rd quarter. White Lighthouse Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,999 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,457,000 after acquiring an additional 4,999 shares during the period. Range Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 504.9% in the 4th quarter. Range Financial Group LLC now owns 22,915 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,758,000 after acquiring an additional 19,127 shares during the period. Accredited Investors Inc. increased its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 3,553.3% in the 3rd quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. now owns 206,959 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,125,000 after acquiring an additional 201,294 shares during the period. Park Avenue Securities LLC increased its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 18.9% in the 4th quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 100,826 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,134,000 after acquiring an additional 16,035 shares during the period. Finally, CWA Asset Management Group LLC grew its position in Philip Morris International by 37.5% during the 4th quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 24,200 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,912,000 after purchasing an additional 6,605 shares during the period. 78.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on PM shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. UBS Group increased their price target on Philip Morris International from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on Philip Morris International in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 price target on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $144.56.

Philip Morris International Stock Down 1.9 %

NYSE:PM opened at $154.47 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $240.18 billion, a PE ratio of 34.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.55. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 52 week low of $87.82 and a 52 week high of $158.39. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $131.64 and its 200-day moving average price is $127.29.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last issued 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 7.89% and a negative return on equity of 120.08%. Sell-side analysts expect that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 26th were paid a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.50%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 26th. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio is presently 119.73%.

Insider Activity at Philip Morris International

In other Philip Morris International news, VP Reginaldo Dobrowolski sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.88, for a total value of $749,400.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 20,799 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,117,354.12. This trade represents a 19.38 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Yann Guerin sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.28, for a total transaction of $378,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 30,308 shares in the company, valued at $4,584,994.24. This trade represents a 7.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 128,143 shares of company stock valued at $19,092,846. 0.14% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.