Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) has received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eleven analysts that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, two have issued a hold recommendation and eight have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $131.35.

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $126.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Philip Morris International from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $145.00 target price (up previously from $138.00) on shares of Philip Morris International in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Barclays decreased their price target on Philip Morris International from $155.00 to $145.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th.

Philip Morris International Stock Up 1.8 %

Shares of Philip Morris International stock opened at $123.78 on Wednesday. Philip Morris International has a twelve month low of $87.82 and a twelve month high of $134.15. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $125.44 and a 200-day moving average price of $121.61. The firm has a market cap of $192.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.65, a PEG ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 0.54.

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, beating the consensus estimate of $1.82 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $9.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.68 billion. Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 117.94% and a net margin of 10.35%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.67 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Philip Morris International will post 6.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 26th were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 26th. Philip Morris International’s payout ratio is 85.71%.

Institutional Trading of Philip Morris International

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of PM. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 54,711,621 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,715,237,000 after purchasing an additional 224,840 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 2.0% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 32,101,324 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,886,818,000 after buying an additional 621,034 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 40.9% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 23,168,446 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,812,649,000 after buying an additional 6,721,094 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 3.0% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 13,000,570 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,560,752,000 after buying an additional 376,406 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc increased its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 4.7% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 10,430,837 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,056,957,000 after acquiring an additional 469,806 shares during the period. 78.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.