Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) Shares Sold by Assenagon Asset Management S.A.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. cut its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 68.0% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 204,554 shares of the company’s stock after selling 435,348 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $24,833,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 4.2% in the third quarter. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 2,158 shares of the company’s stock worth $262,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC lifted its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 0.7% during the second quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 12,888 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,306,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Dearborn Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 3.2% in the second quarter. Dearborn Partners LLC now owns 2,867 shares of the company’s stock valued at $291,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the period. Cypress Wealth Services LLC grew its holdings in Philip Morris International by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Cypress Wealth Services LLC now owns 6,748 shares of the company’s stock valued at $819,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Luts & Greenleigh Group Inc. increased its stake in Philip Morris International by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Luts & Greenleigh Group Inc. now owns 8,448 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,026,000 after buying an additional 89 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Philip Morris International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Philip Morris International from $103.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday. Bank of America increased their target price on Philip Morris International from $125.00 to $139.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Philip Morris International presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $126.85.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Philip Morris International news, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 101,918 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.85, for a total transaction of $13,234,052.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 959,761 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $124,624,965.85. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, insider Massimo Andolina sold 9,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.35, for a total transaction of $1,038,150.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 85,629 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,877,305.15. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 101,918 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.85, for a total transaction of $13,234,052.30. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 959,761 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $124,624,965.85. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 118,418 shares of company stock valued at $15,247,052 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Philip Morris International Stock Down 2.2 %

Shares of NYSE:PM opened at $129.86 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $201.87 billion, a PE ratio of 25.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.55. Philip Morris International Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $87.23 and a fifty-two week high of $133.27. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $122.26 and a 200 day simple moving average of $109.44.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $1.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.82 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $9.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.68 billion. Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 117.94% and a net margin of 12.10%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.67 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 26th were given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 26th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.16%. This is a positive change from Philip Morris International’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio is currently 105.47%.

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.