BLB&B Advisors LLC Sells 91 Shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

BLB&B Advisors LLC reduced its stake in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,933 shares of the company’s stock after selling 91 shares during the quarter. BLB&B Advisors LLC’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $356,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Philip Morris International by 684.4% during the 2nd quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 251 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 219 shares during the period. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC bought a new position in Philip Morris International in the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Sachetta LLC grew its holdings in Philip Morris International by 64.8% during the 2nd quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 267 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the period. Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its holdings in Philip Morris International by 57.4% during the 2nd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 318 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares during the period. Finally, Olistico Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Philip Morris International during the 2nd quarter valued at $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Philip Morris International Price Performance

Shares of Philip Morris International stock opened at $131.39 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $204.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.55. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $121.97 and its 200-day moving average is $109.28. Philip Morris International Inc. has a one year low of $87.23 and a one year high of $131.97.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $1.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.82 by $0.09. Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 113.32% and a net margin of 9.41%. The firm had revenue of $9.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.68 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.67 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.45 EPS for the current year.

Philip Morris International Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 10th. Shareholders 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 a boost from Philip Morris International’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.11%. Philip Morris International’s payout ratio is 105.47%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Massimo Andolina sold 9,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.35, for a total transaction of $1,038,150.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 85,629 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,877,305.15. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.13% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on PM. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Philip Morris International from $125.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price 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. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Philip Morris International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $103.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $145.00 target price (up from $138.00) on shares of Philip Morris International in a report on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $126.85.

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.