Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) Reaches New 52-Week High – What’s Next?

Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $151.44 and last traded at $151.07, with a volume of 1098103 shares. The stock had previously closed at $149.80.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on PM. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Barclays dropped their price target on Philip Morris International from $155.00 to $145.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on Philip Morris International in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group upped their target price on Philip Morris International from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $141.22.

Philip Morris International Stock Performance

The business’s 50 day moving average price is $128.76 and its 200 day moving average price is $125.90. The firm has a market cap of $235.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.68, a PEG ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.55.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.49 by $0.06. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 7.89% and a negative return on equity of 120.08%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 26th were given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 26th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.56%. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 119.73%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Reginaldo Dobrowolski sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.88, for a total value of $749,400.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 20,799 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,117,354.12. This trade represents a 19.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Philip Morris International

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Philip Morris International in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,941,000. Ball & Co Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in Philip Morris International during the fourth quarter worth $36,000. Invst LLC grew its holdings in Philip Morris International by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. Invst LLC now owns 4,813 shares of the company’s stock valued at $579,000 after buying an additional 237 shares in the last quarter. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. acquired a new stake in shares of Philip Morris International in the 4th quarter worth $83,000. Finally, Pinney & Scofield Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Philip Morris International during the 4th quarter worth $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.63% 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.