Conning Inc. Has $27.13 Million Position in Philip Morris International Inc. $PM

Conning Inc. reduced its position in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 18.0% during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 148,981 shares of the company’s stock after selling 32,601 shares during the period. Conning Inc.’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $27,134,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in shares of Philip Morris International in the first quarter worth $1,712,994,000. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 26.4% in the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 21,840,422 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,466,730,000 after acquiring an additional 4,563,632 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 57.5% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 9,794,530 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,554,686,000 after acquiring an additional 3,575,158 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 22.2% in the first quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 9,018,628 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,431,527,000 after acquiring an additional 1,635,636 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 111.1% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,002,216 shares of the company’s stock worth $473,660,000 after acquiring an additional 1,580,368 shares during the last quarter. 78.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Philip Morris International Trading Up 2.3%

Shares of NYSE:PM opened at $160.51 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $249.85 billion, a PE ratio of 30.52, a P/E/G ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.46. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 1 year low of $116.12 and a 1 year high of $186.69. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $164.24 and a 200 day moving average price of $168.67.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 28th. The company reported $1.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 9.03% and a negative return on equity of 120.86%. The firm had revenue of $8.12 billion during the quarter. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 3rd will be issued a dividend of $1.47 per share. This represents a $5.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.7%. This is a positive change from Philip Morris International’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.35. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 3rd. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio is currently 111.79%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on PM shares. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $225.00 to $220.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $195.00 price target on shares of Philip Morris International in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Philip Morris International in a research note on Wednesday. Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Philip Morris International in a report on Thursday, September 4th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $177.00 to $166.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, September 5th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $195.44.

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.