Insider Selling: Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) CEO Sells 40,000 Shares of Stock

Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) CEO Jacek Olczak sold 40,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.87, for a total transaction of $5,954,800.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 547,426 shares in the company, valued at $81,495,308.62. This trade represents a 6.81 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Philip Morris International Trading Up 1.9 %

Shares of Philip Morris International stock opened at $154.39 on Monday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $129.81 and its 200-day moving average price is $126.52. The firm has a market cap of $240.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.23, a P/E/G ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.55. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 12 month low of $87.82 and a 12 month high of $154.64.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.55 EPS 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%. Analysts forecast that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Meridian Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. Meridian Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,781 shares of the company’s stock worth $214,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC boosted its position in Philip Morris International by 53.7% in the fourth quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 206 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV increased its holdings in Philip Morris International by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 3,628 shares of the company’s stock worth $437,000 after buying an additional 73 shares during the period. Balboa Wealth Partners increased its holdings in Philip Morris International by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Balboa Wealth Partners now owns 3,712 shares of the company’s stock worth $447,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the period. Finally, Cravens & Co Advisors LLC raised its position in Philip Morris International by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Cravens & Co Advisors LLC now owns 10,052 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,210,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PM has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted 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 note on Tuesday, February 18th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Philip Morris International in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 target price on the stock. Barclays dropped their price objective on Philip Morris International from $155.00 to $145.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Philip Morris International has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $141.22.

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.