First County Bank CT Cuts Holdings in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

First County Bank CT cut its holdings in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 11.5% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 21,616 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,821 shares during the quarter. Philip Morris International comprises 1.5% of First County Bank CT’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. First County Bank CT’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $2,601,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. FMR LLC grew its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 40.9% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 23,168,446 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,812,649,000 after acquiring an additional 6,721,094 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 57.2% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 9,241,612 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,121,932,000 after buying an additional 3,363,454 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI grew its stake in Philip Morris International by 161.6% in the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,943,460 shares of the company’s stock valued at $235,936,000 after acquiring an additional 1,200,636 shares during the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Philip Morris International by 14,611.4% in the 3rd quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 1,173,531 shares of the company’s stock valued at $142,467,000 after buying an additional 1,165,554 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wulff Hansen & CO. increased its position in Philip Morris International by 10,033.0% during the second quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. now owns 1,039,646 shares of the company’s stock worth $105,347,000 after buying an additional 1,029,386 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Werner Barth sold 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.98, for a total transaction of $974,850.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 95,418 shares in the company, valued at $12,402,431.64. This represents a 7.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 101,918 shares of Philip Morris International stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.85, for a total value of $13,234,052.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 959,761 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $124,624,965.85. The trade was a 9.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on Philip Morris International from $118.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Barclays increased their price target on Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Philip Morris International from $126.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Philip Morris International from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on Philip Morris International from $103.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Philip Morris International has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $131.50.

Philip Morris International Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of PM stock traded up $0.19 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $121.19. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,973,480 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,390,724. The firm has a market capitalization of $188.43 billion, a PE ratio of 19.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 0.54. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $127.23 and its 200-day simple moving average is $120.30. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 12-month low of $87.82 and a 12-month high of $134.15.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $1.91 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.82 by $0.09. Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 117.94% and a net margin of 10.35%. The company had revenue of $9.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.68 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.67 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 26th will be paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 26th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.46%. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio is currently 85.71%.

Philip Morris International 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.