National Pension Service Acquires 533,845 Shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

National Pension Service boosted its holdings in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 17.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,579,451 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 533,845 shares during the period. National Pension Service’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $430,787,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 54,711,621 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,715,237,000 after buying an additional 224,840 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Philip Morris International by 2.0% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 32,101,324 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,886,818,000 after acquiring an additional 621,034 shares during the period. FMR LLC boosted its stake in Philip Morris International by 40.9% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 23,168,446 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,812,649,000 after acquiring an additional 6,721,094 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 21.0% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 16,070,482 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,934,083,000 after purchasing an additional 2,785,987 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 13,000,570 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,560,752,000 after purchasing an additional 376,406 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Philip Morris International news, CEO Jacek Olczak sold 40,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.87, for a total value of $5,954,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 547,426 shares in the company, valued at approximately $81,495,308.62. The trade was a 6.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale 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 business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 20,799 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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 three months, insiders have sold 128,143 shares of company stock worth $19,092,846. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. UBS Group increased their price objective on Philip Morris International from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. 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 note on Friday, February 7th. Barclays lowered their price objective 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. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Philip Morris International in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 target price for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $141.22.

Philip Morris International Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE:PM opened at $157.34 on Wednesday. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 12 month low of $87.82 and a 12 month high of $158.23. The stock has a market cap of $244.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.89, a P/E/G ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a 50 day moving average of $131.04 and a 200 day moving average of $127.10.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 26th were issued a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 26th. Philip Morris International’s payout ratio is currently 119.73%.

Philip Morris International Company 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.