Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) Shares Acquired by Navellier & Associates Inc.

Navellier & Associates Inc. grew its holdings in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 63.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,335 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 2,075 shares during the period. Navellier & Associates Inc.’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $642,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Drum Hill Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Philip Morris International during the fourth quarter worth about $282,000. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Philip Morris International by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,754 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,054,000 after purchasing an additional 183 shares during the last quarter. Compass Capital Corp MA ADV acquired a new stake in Philip Morris International during the fourth quarter worth about $293,000. Waterfront Wealth Inc. increased its position in Philip Morris International by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. Waterfront Wealth Inc. now owns 13,344 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,606,000 after purchasing an additional 367 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ardent Capital Management Inc. increased its position in Philip Morris International by 4.6% during the fourth quarter. Ardent Capital Management Inc. now owns 25,434 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,061,000 after purchasing an additional 1,109 shares during the last quarter. 78.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Philip Morris International Stock Performance

NYSE PM opened at $154.39 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $129.81 and a 200-day simple moving average of $126.45. Philip Morris International Inc. has a one year low of $87.82 and a one year high of $154.64. The firm has a market cap of $240.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.23, a PEG ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.55.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.55 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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%. Equities analysts predict that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 26th were paid a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 26th. Philip Morris International’s payout ratio is 119.73%.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Reginaldo Dobrowolski sold 5,000 shares of Philip Morris International stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.88, for a total value of $749,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 20,799 shares in the company, valued at $3,117,354.12. The trade was a 19.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jacek Olczak sold 40,000 shares of Philip Morris International stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.87, for a total transaction of $5,954,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 547,426 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $81,495,308.62. This represents a 6.81 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 128,143 shares of company stock valued at $19,092,846. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on PM shares. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective 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, February 18th. StockNews.com cut shares of Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $155.00 to $145.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of Philip Morris International in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 price target for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. 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 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.