Financial Security Advisor Inc. Raises Stock Position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Financial Security Advisor Inc. raised its holdings in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 2.3% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 20,635 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 459 shares during the period. Philip Morris International accounts for 0.6% of Financial Security Advisor Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 25th biggest holding. Financial Security Advisor Inc.’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $2,483,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 457.5% in the third quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 223 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 183 shares during the last quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC lifted its holdings in Philip Morris International by 203.8% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 240 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 161 shares during the period. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Philip Morris International in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in Philip Morris International in the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, Asset Dedication LLC grew its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 55.5% during the 4th quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 412 shares of the company’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 147 shares during the period. 78.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other 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 transaction of $5,954,800.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 547,426 shares in the company, valued at $81,495,308.62. The trade was a 6.81 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Reginaldo Dobrowolski sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.88, for a total value of $749,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 20,799 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,117,354.12. This trade represents a 19.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 128,143 shares of company stock worth $19,092,846. 0.14% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PM has been the subject of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Philip Morris International in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 target price for the company. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. UBS Group lifted their price target on Philip Morris International from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped 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. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Philip Morris International has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $144.56.

Philip Morris International Trading Down 0.5 %

NYSE:PM opened at $153.95 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $132.28 and a two-hundred day moving average of $127.47. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 12 month low of $87.82 and a 12 month high of $158.39. The firm has a market cap of $239.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.55.

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

Philip Morris International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 26th were paid a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.51%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 26th. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio is currently 119.73%.

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.