Quantbot Technologies LP Buys New Shares in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 31,452 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,818,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. FMR LLC grew its stake in 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. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in Philip Morris International by 16.3% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 13,234,478 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,341,050,000 after buying an additional 1,856,551 shares during the period. First Eagle Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Philip Morris International by 7.4% during the second quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 10,655,948 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,079,767,000 after buying an additional 736,961 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc grew its stake in Philip Morris International by 4.7% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 10,430,837 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,056,957,000 after buying an additional 469,806 shares during the period. Finally, Ninety One UK Ltd grew its stake in Philip Morris International by 0.9% during the second quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 9,467,759 shares of the company’s stock worth $959,368,000 after buying an additional 86,667 shares during the period. 78.63% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on PM shares. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price 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 upped their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $118.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $155.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $118.50 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus restated a “buy” rating and issued a $145.00 target price (up from $138.00) on shares of Philip Morris International in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, Philip Morris International has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $131.50.

Philip Morris International Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:PM opened at $132.28 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $205.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.54. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 1-year low of $87.82 and a 1-year high of $134.15. The company’s fifty day moving average is $125.04 and its two-hundred day moving average is $115.30.

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

Philip Morris International Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 26th were issued a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.08%. The ex-dividend date 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 (DPR) is 85.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Werner Barth sold 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.98, for a total value of $974,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 95,418 shares in the company, valued at $12,402,431.64. This represents a 7.29 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 101,918 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.85, for a total transaction of $13,234,052.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 959,761 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $124,624,965.85. This represents a 9.60 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

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.