Wrapmanager Inc. Decreases Stock Holdings in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Wrapmanager Inc. reduced its holdings in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 11.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 12,400 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,578 shares during the period. Wrapmanager Inc.’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $1,492,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Mengis Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Philip Morris International by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Mengis Capital Management Inc. now owns 44,462 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,351,000 after acquiring an additional 390 shares in the last quarter. BankPlus Trust Department purchased a new stake in Philip Morris International during the 4th quarter valued at $303,000. Rothschild Investment LLC lifted its position in Philip Morris International by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 17,265 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,078,000 after buying an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Wealthstream Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Philip Morris International by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Wealthstream Advisors Inc. now owns 2,464 shares of the company’s stock worth $297,000 after buying an additional 82 shares during the period. Finally, Crestwood Advisors Group LLC increased its position in Philip Morris International by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC now owns 18,723 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,253,000 after acquiring an additional 503 shares during the last quarter. 78.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Yann Guerin sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $151.28, for a total transaction of $378,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 30,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,584,994.24. This represents a 7.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 40,643 shares of Philip Morris International stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.06, for a total transaction of $6,058,245.58. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 561,349 shares in the company, valued at $83,674,681.94. This represents a 6.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 128,143 shares of company stock worth $19,092,846. Corporate insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Philip Morris International Stock Performance

Shares of PM opened at $156.13 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $242.76 billion, a PE ratio of 34.62, a PEG ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $130.42 and a 200-day moving average price of $126.81. Philip Morris International Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $87.82 and a fifty-two week high of $156.63.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last announced its earnings results 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 research analysts forecast that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 EPS for the current year.

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 26th were given a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 26th. Philip Morris International’s payout ratio is 119.73%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on PM shares. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Barclays cut their target price on Philip Morris International from $155.00 to $145.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. StockNews.com downgraded Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $141.22.

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.