Cypress Capital Group Cuts Stock Position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Cypress Capital Group lessened its holdings in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 12.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 46,417 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,852 shares during the period. Cypress Capital Group’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $5,586,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Investment Advisory Services Inc. TX ADV increased its stake in Philip Morris International by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Investment Advisory Services Inc. TX ADV now owns 2,510 shares of the company’s stock worth $302,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Intergy Private Wealth LLC increased its stake in Philip Morris International by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. Intergy Private Wealth LLC now owns 1,959 shares of the company’s stock worth $236,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. BKM Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Philip Morris International by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. BKM Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,479 shares of the company’s stock worth $298,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Detalus Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Detalus Advisors LLC now owns 3,231 shares of the company’s stock valued at $389,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the period. Finally, Wealthstream Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Wealthstream Advisors Inc. now owns 2,464 shares of the company’s stock valued at $297,000 after buying an additional 82 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Philip Morris International Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE PM opened at $153.98 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $239.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.14, a PEG ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.55. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $134.22 and a 200 day moving average price of $128.43. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 52-week low of $87.82 and a 52-week high of $159.51.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 7.89%. Analysts forecast that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Philip Morris International Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 26th were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 26th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.51%. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio is currently 119.73%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Yann Guerin sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.28, for a total value of $378,200.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 30,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,584,994.24. This represents a 7.62 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Reginaldo Dobrowolski sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 directly owns 20,799 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,117,354.12. The trade was a 19.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 128,143 shares of company stock worth $19,092,846 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PM has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group boosted their target price on Philip Morris International from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Philip Morris International in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 target price for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. One investment 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, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $144.56.

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.