SWS Partners Acquires 2,989 Shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

SWS Partners raised its stake in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 14.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 24,206 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,989 shares during the quarter. SWS Partners’ holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $2,945,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC lifted its position in Philip Morris International by 3.7% during the third quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 8,474 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,114,000 after acquiring an additional 299 shares during the last quarter. Optas LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Philip Morris International during the 3rd quarter valued at $268,000. Pure Financial Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 7.9% in the 3rd quarter. Pure Financial Advisors LLC now owns 6,621 shares of the company’s stock worth $804,000 after purchasing an additional 482 shares in the last quarter. Lansing Street Advisors grew its stake in Philip Morris International by 5.4% during the 3rd quarter. Lansing Street Advisors now owns 4,180 shares of the company’s stock worth $507,000 after buying an additional 213 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. grew its stake in Philip Morris International by 133.6% during the 3rd quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 69,206 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,402,000 after buying an additional 39,574 shares during the last quarter. 78.63% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Philip Morris International Price Performance

NYSE:PM opened at $158.78 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $133.60 and its 200-day moving average price is $128.18. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 1-year low of $87.82 and a 1-year high of $158.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $246.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.21, a PEG ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.55.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 26th were issued a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.40%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 26th. Philip Morris International’s payout ratio is presently 119.73%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. 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 report on Tuesday, February 18th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Philip Morris International in a report on Thursday, January 16th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 price target for the company. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $144.56.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Philip Morris International news, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 40,643 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.06, for a total value of $6,058,245.58. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 561,349 shares in the company, valued at approximately $83,674,681.94. This represents a 6.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Werner Barth sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.67, for a total value of $1,486,700.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 106,244 shares in the company, valued at $15,795,295.48. This trade represents a 8.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 128,143 shares of company stock worth $19,092,846. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

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.