Verus Capital Partners LLC Increases Position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Verus Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 11.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,784 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 605 shares during the period. Verus Capital Partners LLC’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $702,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of PM. White Lighthouse Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Philip Morris International by 71.4% during the 3rd quarter. White Lighthouse Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,999 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,457,000 after purchasing an additional 4,999 shares during the last quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Philip Morris International by 25.4% during the first quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 34,390 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,151,000 after acquiring an additional 6,974 shares during the last quarter. Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new position in shares of Philip Morris International in the third quarter valued at approximately $692,000. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 17.9% in the second quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 31,591 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,203,000 after buying an additional 4,793 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Burke & Herbert Bank & Trust Co. raised its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 68.0% in the second quarter. Burke & Herbert Bank & Trust Co. now owns 20,896 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,117,000 after buying an additional 8,455 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Philip Morris International Stock Performance

Philip Morris International stock opened at $124.19 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $124.24 and a 200-day simple moving average of $112.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $193.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.71, a P/E/G ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.54. Philip Morris International Inc. has a one year low of $87.82 and a one year high of $134.15.

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

Philip Morris International Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 26th were given a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 26th. This is a positive change from Philip Morris International’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio is currently 85.71%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently issued reports on PM. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $126.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $103.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $118.50 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $118.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Philip Morris International has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $127.85.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Werner Barth sold 7,500 shares of the firm’s 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 95,418 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,402,431.64. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Philip Morris International news, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 101,918 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.85, for a total transaction of $13,234,052.30. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 959,761 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $124,624,965.85. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Werner Barth sold 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.98, for a total transaction of $974,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 95,418 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,402,431.64. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.14% 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.