CoreFirst Bank & Trust Trims Stock Position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

CoreFirst Bank & Trust decreased its stake in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 8.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,770 shares of the company’s stock after selling 447 shares during the period. CoreFirst Bank & Trust’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $757,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Philip Morris International by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 139,432,392 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,780,688,000 after purchasing an additional 1,167,810 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors lifted its position in Philip Morris International by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 122,584,210 shares of the company’s stock worth $14,752,926,000 after acquiring an additional 4,216,586 shares during the period. GQG Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 14.3% in the 4th quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 48,746,809 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,866,678,000 after purchasing an additional 6,092,558 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 9.9% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 35,286,582 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,241,837,000 after purchasing an additional 3,185,258 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in Philip Morris International by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 17,276,790 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,079,262,000 after purchasing an additional 516,617 shares in the last quarter. 78.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Philip Morris International Stock Performance

NYSE:PM opened at $179.00 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $278.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.91, a P/E/G ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.51. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $177.14 and its 200 day moving average price is $154.80. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 52 week low of $101.62 and a 52 week high of $186.69.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $9.30 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.10 billion. Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 122.40% and a net margin of 8.43%. The firm’s revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.50 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Friday, June 27th will be issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 27th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.02%. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 111.34%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on PM shares. Needham & Company LLC began coverage on shares of Philip Morris International in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Argus raised Philip Morris International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $182.00 price objective (up from $156.00) on shares of Philip Morris International in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $168.00 to $186.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on Philip Morris International from $163.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $176.80.

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.