Symmetry Investments LP Takes Position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Symmetry Investments LP bought a new position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund bought 16,338 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,966,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Philip Morris International by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 139,432,392 shares of the company’s stock worth $16,780,688,000 after purchasing an additional 1,167,810 shares during the period. Capital World Investors boosted its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 122,584,210 shares of the company’s stock worth $14,752,926,000 after acquiring an additional 4,216,586 shares during the last quarter. GQG Partners LLC grew its stake in Philip Morris International by 14.3% during the fourth quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 48,746,809 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,866,678,000 after acquiring an additional 6,092,558 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Philip Morris International by 9.9% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 35,286,582 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,241,837,000 after acquiring an additional 3,185,258 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in Philip Morris International by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 17,276,790 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,079,262,000 after purchasing an additional 516,617 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Philip Morris International

In related news, insider Werner Barth sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.67, for a total value of $1,486,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 106,244 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,795,295.48. The trade was a 8.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Jacek Olczak sold 40,000 shares of the 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 547,426 shares in the company, valued at approximately $81,495,308.62. This trade represents a 6.81 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 131,822 shares of company stock valued at $19,655,585 in the last quarter. 0.13% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Philip Morris International Trading Up 1.1 %

Philip Morris International stock opened at $163.95 on Wednesday. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 12-month low of $93.84 and a 12-month high of $171.51. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $154.34 and a 200-day moving average price of $136.65. The firm has a market capitalization of $255.19 billion, a PE ratio of 36.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.46.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 20th were given a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 20th. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 119.73%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Barclays raised their price objective on Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $160.00 to $168.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 10th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Argus raised shares of Philip Morris International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. 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 on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Philip Morris International presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $150.78.

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.