Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) Upgraded at Argus

Argus upgraded shares of Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday, MarketBeat.com reports.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. StockNews.com cut shares of Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Philip Morris International in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 target price on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Philip Morris International currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $144.56.

Philip Morris International Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of PM stock opened at $151.95 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $139.10 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $130.19. Philip Morris International has a 12 month low of $87.82 and a 12 month high of $159.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $236.26 billion, a PE ratio of 33.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.53.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.55 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.49 by $0.06. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 7.89% and a negative return on equity of 120.08%. On average, equities analysts predict that Philip Morris International will post 7.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 20th will be paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 20th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.55%. Philip Morris International’s payout ratio is 119.73%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Emmanuel Babeau sold 30,000 shares of Philip Morris International stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.85, for a total transaction of $4,465,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 139,105 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,705,779.25. This trade represents a 17.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Werner Barth sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.67, for a total value of $1,486,700.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 106,244 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,795,295.48. The trade was a 8.60 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 131,822 shares of company stock worth $19,655,585 in the last quarter. 0.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Philip Morris International

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of PM. Harbour Investments Inc. lifted its position in Philip Morris International by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 11,805 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,433,000 after buying an additional 387 shares during the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Philip Morris International in the 3rd quarter valued at $749,000. KBC Group NV boosted its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 119,592 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,518,000 after purchasing an additional 4,001 shares in the last quarter. Lifeworks Advisors LLC raised its position in Philip Morris International by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Lifeworks Advisors LLC now owns 4,309 shares of the company’s stock worth $523,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares during the period. Finally, OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in Philip Morris International by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 31,073 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,772,000 after purchasing an additional 947 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

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.