First Foundation Advisors Reduces Holdings in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

First Foundation Advisors lessened its stake in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 32.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 139,656 shares of the company’s stock after selling 66,236 shares during the quarter. First Foundation Advisors’ holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $16,808,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of PM. NewSquare Capital LLC grew its position in Philip Morris International by 53.7% in the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 206 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Philip Morris International during the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Knuff & Co LLC acquired a new position in Philip Morris International in the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in Philip Morris International in the 4th quarter worth $37,000. Finally, Truvestments Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 113.8% during the 4th quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 357 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 190 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Philip Morris International Price Performance

Shares of NYSE PM opened at $152.53 on Thursday. Philip Morris International Inc. has a one year low of $87.82 and a one year high of $163.08. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $151.14 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $134.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $237.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.82, a PEG ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.46.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.49 by $0.06. Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 120.08% and a net margin of 7.89%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 20th will be issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 20th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.54%. Philip Morris International’s payout ratio is presently 119.73%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on PM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Barclays boosted 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. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Philip Morris International in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. One 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’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Philip Morris International has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $144.56.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Reginaldo Dobrowolski sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.88, for a total value of $749,400.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 20,799 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,117,354.12. The trade was a 19.38 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Yann Guerin sold 2,500 shares of Philip Morris International stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.28, for a total value of $378,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 30,308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,584,994.24. The trade was a 7.62 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 131,822 shares of company stock worth $19,655,585 over the last three months. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.