Sapient Capital LLC Invests $5.07 Million in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Sapient Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 53,202 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,074,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PM. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Philip Morris International during the 3rd quarter worth $240,000. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. increased its stake in Philip Morris International by 12.8% during the 3rd quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 27,060 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,505,000 after purchasing an additional 3,075 shares in the last quarter. Legacy Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Philip Morris International in the third quarter worth $37,000. Apexium Financial LP lifted its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 4.9% during the third quarter. Apexium Financial LP now owns 2,467 shares of the company’s stock worth $229,000 after buying an additional 116 shares during the period. Finally, Kowal Investment Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 1.9% during the third quarter. Kowal Investment Group LLC now owns 13,339 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,235,000 after buying an additional 249 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Philip Morris International

In other Philip Morris International news, insider Massimo Andolina sold 8,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.63, for a total value of $772,447.50. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 94,629 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,860,113.27. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, insider Wilde Frederic De sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.42, for a total value of $1,928,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 178,447 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,205,859.74. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Massimo Andolina sold 8,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.63, for a total transaction of $772,447.50. Following the sale, the insider now owns 94,629 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,860,113.27. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 35,250 shares of company stock valued at $3,339,528 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Philip Morris International Price Performance

PM stock traded up $0.09 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $97.40. 5,611,928 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,838,263. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 12-month low of $87.23 and a 12-month high of $100.70. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $92.47 and its 200 day moving average is $92.31. The company has a market cap of $151.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.60.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.09. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 8.58% and a negative return on equity of 113.26%. The firm had revenue of $8.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.44 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.38 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 9th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 21st were given a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 20th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.34%. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 101.56%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Argus restated a “hold” rating on shares of Philip Morris International in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. UBS Group downgraded shares of Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $105.00 to $86.50 in a report on Tuesday, January 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $108.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, Societe Generale raised shares of Philip Morris International from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $87.50 target price for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Philip Morris International currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $105.50.

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.