First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc. Grows Position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc. grew its stake in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 0.8% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 78,666 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 618 shares during the quarter. Philip Morris International accounts for about 1.9% of First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest holding. First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $9,467,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Investment Advisory Services Inc. TX ADV grew its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Investment Advisory Services Inc. TX ADV now owns 2,510 shares of the company’s stock valued at $302,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the period. Intergy Private Wealth LLC grew its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. Intergy Private Wealth LLC now owns 1,959 shares of the company’s stock valued at $236,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the period. 49 Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. 49 Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,432 shares of the company’s stock valued at $295,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the period. Woodmont Investment Counsel LLC grew its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Woodmont Investment Counsel LLC now owns 5,452 shares of the company’s stock valued at $662,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the period. Finally, Sargent Investment Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Sargent Investment Group LLC now owns 3,972 shares of the company’s stock valued at $467,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on PM shares. StockNews.com lowered Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. UBS Group increased their price target on Philip Morris International from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday. Barclays decreased their price target on Philip Morris International from $155.00 to $145.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley started coverage on Philip Morris International in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 price target on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $134.35.

Philip Morris International Trading Up 1.5 %

PM stock opened at $146.58 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $125.66 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $124.06. The stock has a market cap of $227.91 billion, a PE ratio of 32.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.55. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 1 year low of $87.82 and a 1 year high of $146.78.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.49 by $0.06. Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 120.08% and a net margin of 9.24%. On average, analysts forecast that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 26th were issued a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.68%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 26th. Philip Morris International’s payout ratio is 119.73%.

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.