GLOBALT Investments LLC GA Sells 6,083 Shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

GLOBALT Investments LLC GA lessened its holdings in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 20.0% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 24,319 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,083 shares during the period. GLOBALT Investments LLC GA’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $2,952,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Quest Partners LLC lifted its stake in Philip Morris International by 233.8% in the third quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 21,993 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,670,000 after buying an additional 15,404 shares during the period. Aljian Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Philip Morris International in the third quarter valued at approximately $1,035,000. Swiss National Bank lifted its stake in Philip Morris International by 0.4% in the third quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 4,614,200 shares of the company’s stock valued at $560,164,000 after buying an additional 17,700 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its stake in Philip Morris International by 12.1% in the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 1,786,078 shares of the company’s stock valued at $216,830,000 after buying an additional 193,308 shares during the period. Finally, Atlanta Consulting Group Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Philip Morris International in the third quarter valued at approximately $1,135,000. 78.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on PM shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on Philip Morris International from $118.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Philip Morris International from $103.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Philip Morris International from $118.50 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Philip Morris International from $126.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Philip Morris International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $131.50.

Philip Morris International Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:PM opened at $128.59 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $199.94 billion, a PE ratio of 20.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.54. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $124.30 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $113.69. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 1 year low of $87.82 and a 1 year high of $134.15.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $1.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.82 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $9.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.68 billion. Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 117.94% and a net margin of 10.35%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.67 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Philip Morris International Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 26th were given a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.20%. 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. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio is currently 85.71%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Werner Barth sold 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.98, for a total transaction of $974,850.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 95,418 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,402,431.64. This represents a 7.29 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 101,918 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.85, for a total value of $13,234,052.30. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 959,761 shares in the company, valued at $124,624,965.85. This trade represents a 9.60 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

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.