Troy Asset Management Ltd Reduces Holdings in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Troy Asset Management Ltd decreased its stake in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 11.8% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 569,529 shares of the company’s stock after selling 75,889 shares during the period. Philip Morris International makes up 1.9% of Troy Asset Management Ltd’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest holding. Troy Asset Management Ltd’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $57,710,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Evoke Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 7.2% during the 4th quarter. Evoke Wealth LLC now owns 2,398 shares of the company’s stock valued at $229,000 after buying an additional 162 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV boosted its stake in Philip Morris International by 6.3% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 104,347 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,817,000 after acquiring an additional 6,209 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its holdings in Philip Morris International by 4.7% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 24,365 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,292,000 after purchasing an additional 1,095 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 2,334,266 shares of the company’s stock valued at $219,608,000 after purchasing an additional 6,508 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CWA Asset Management Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 3,906 shares of the company’s stock valued at $368,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently weighed in on PM shares. Barclays upped their price target on Philip Morris International from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Philip Morris International from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Philip Morris International from $126.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. StockNews.com raised shares of Philip Morris International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $119.14.

Philip Morris International Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE PM opened at $121.39 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $119.88 and its 200-day moving average price is $105.92. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 52-week low of $87.23 and a 52-week high of $128.22. The company has a market cap of $188.71 billion, a PE ratio of 23.71, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.55.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The company reported $1.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.57 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $9.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.19 billion. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 9.41% and a negative return on equity of 113.32%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.60 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 26th will be issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 26th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.45%. This is a positive change from Philip Morris International’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Philip Morris International’s payout ratio is presently 105.47%.

Insider Activity at Philip Morris International

In other Philip Morris International news, insider Wilde Frederic De sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.01, for a total value of $2,260,200.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 158,447 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,906,095.47. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, insider Wilde Frederic De sold 20,000 shares of Philip Morris International stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.01, for a total transaction of $2,260,200.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 158,447 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,906,095.47. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Massimo Andolina sold 9,000 shares of Philip Morris International stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.35, for a total value of $1,038,150.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 85,629 shares in the company, valued at $9,877,305.15. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.