Parthenon LLC Trims Holdings in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Parthenon LLC reduced its stake in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 6.4% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 29,141 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,000 shares during the period. Parthenon LLC’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $3,538,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Woodmont Investment Counsel LLC grew its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. Woodmont Investment Counsel LLC now owns 5,452 shares of the company’s stock worth $662,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the period. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. grew its position in Philip Morris International by 4.2% during the third quarter. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 2,158 shares of the company’s stock worth $262,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the period. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC increased its holdings in Philip Morris International by 0.7% in the second quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 12,888 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,306,000 after buying an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Dearborn Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 3.2% during the 2nd quarter. Dearborn Partners LLC now owns 2,867 shares of the company’s stock valued at $291,000 after acquiring an additional 89 shares during the period. Finally, Cypress Wealth Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Cypress Wealth Services LLC now owns 6,748 shares of the company’s stock worth $819,000 after acquiring an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. 78.63% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Barclays raised their price objective on Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $155.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $145.00 price target (up previously from $138.00) on shares of Philip Morris International in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $125.00 to $139.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Philip Morris International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $127.85.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other 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 transaction, the chairman now owns 959,761 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $124,624,965.85. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, insider Werner Barth sold 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.98, for a total value of $974,850.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 95,418 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,402,431.64. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 101,918 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chairman now directly owns 959,761 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $124,624,965.85. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.14% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Philip Morris International Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE PM traded up $0.66 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $124.88. 985,011 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,373,836. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $124.21 and a 200-day moving average price of $113.02. The company has a market capitalization of $194.17 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 52-week low of $87.82 and a 52-week high of $134.15.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last released its 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. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 10.35% and a negative return on equity of 117.94%. The firm had revenue of $9.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.68 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.67 EPS. Philip Morris International’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Philip Morris International Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 26th were given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 26th. This is an increase from Philip Morris International’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.32%. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio is 85.71%.

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.