Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) Position Raised by Teacher Retirement System of Texas

Teacher Retirement System of Texas grew its position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 63.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,168,553 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 451,991 shares during the period. Philip Morris International makes up approximately 0.5% of Teacher Retirement System of Texas’ holdings, making the stock its 28th biggest position. Teacher Retirement System of Texas’ holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $140,635,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Prospera Financial Services Inc increased its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 15.3% during the third quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 16,649 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,022,000 after acquiring an additional 2,210 shares during the period. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG bought a new stake in shares of Philip Morris International in the 3rd quarter worth $2,791,000. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC bought a new stake in shares of Philip Morris International in the 3rd quarter worth $3,783,000. Strategy Asset Managers LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 1,333.8% in the third quarter. Strategy Asset Managers LLC now owns 36,720 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,458,000 after buying an additional 34,159 shares during the period. Finally, Commerce Bank boosted its stake in Philip Morris International by 0.7% during the third quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 195,900 shares of the company’s stock valued at $23,782,000 after buying an additional 1,395 shares in the last quarter. 78.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 40,643 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.06, for a total transaction of $6,058,245.58. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 561,349 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $83,674,681.94. This trade represents a 6.75 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Yann Guerin sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $151.28, for a total value of $378,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 30,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,584,994.24. This trade represents a 7.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 131,822 shares of company stock worth $19,655,585. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PM has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Argus raised Philip Morris International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on Philip Morris International in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 price objective for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Philip Morris International currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $144.56.

Philip Morris International Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of Philip Morris International stock opened at $154.27 on Thursday. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 12-month low of $87.82 and a 12-month high of $159.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $239.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.21, a PEG ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.53. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $141.09 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $130.80.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.55 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 7.89%. Sell-side analysts anticipate 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 20th will be issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 20th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.50%. Philip Morris International’s payout ratio is 119.73%.

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.