Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) Shares Bought by Essex Financial Services Inc.

Essex Financial Services Inc. grew its stake in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 5.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 28,346 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,416 shares during the quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $3,411,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. White Lighthouse Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Philip Morris International by 71.4% in the third quarter. White Lighthouse Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,999 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,457,000 after buying an additional 4,999 shares in the last quarter. Range Financial Group LLC grew its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 504.9% during the 4th quarter. Range Financial Group LLC now owns 22,915 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,758,000 after acquiring an additional 19,127 shares during the period. Accredited Investors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 3,553.3% in the 3rd quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. now owns 206,959 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,125,000 after purchasing an additional 201,294 shares in the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC raised its holdings in Philip Morris International by 18.9% in the 4th quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 100,826 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,134,000 after purchasing an additional 16,035 shares during the period. Finally, CWA Asset Management Group LLC boosted its position in Philip Morris International by 37.5% during the fourth quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 24,200 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,912,000 after purchasing an additional 6,605 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on PM. Barclays cut their price objective on Philip Morris International from $155.00 to $145.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Morgan Stanley began coverage on Philip Morris International in a report on Thursday, January 16th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 price objective on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $134.35.

Philip Morris International Price Performance

PM opened at $146.58 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $125.66 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $124.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $227.91 billion, a price-to-earnings 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 announced 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 9.24%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 26th were given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 26th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.68%. 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.