Independence Bank of Kentucky Acquires 6,639 Shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Independence Bank of Kentucky increased its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 124.7% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 11,963 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,639 shares during the quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $1,125,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in Philip Morris International during the third quarter worth about $27,000. PCA Investment Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new stake in Philip Morris International during the second quarter worth about $27,000. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. acquired a new stake in Philip Morris International during the third quarter worth about $36,000. Legacy Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Philip Morris International during the third quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, VitalStone Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 950.0% in the 2nd quarter. VitalStone Financial LLC now owns 420 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 380 shares in the last quarter. 78.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on PM. UBS Group downgraded shares of Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $105.00 to $86.50 in a research note on Tuesday, January 23rd. Argus restated a “hold” rating on shares of Philip Morris International in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. Finally, Societe Generale upgraded shares of Philip Morris International from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $87.50 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 13th. One 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 company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $105.40.

Philip Morris International Stock Performance

Philip Morris International stock opened at $91.01 on Thursday. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 52-week low of $87.23 and a 52-week high of $101.92. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $91.46 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $92.34. The firm has a market cap of $141.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.13, a PEG ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.61.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The company reported $1.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.44 by ($0.08). Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 116.29% and a net margin of 8.53%. The firm had revenue of $9.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.99 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.39 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 9th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 21st will be paid a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 20th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.71%. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio is currently 103.59%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Massimo Andolina sold 8,250 shares of Philip Morris International stock in a transaction on Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.63, for a total value of $772,447.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 94,629 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,860,113.27. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Massimo Andolina sold 8,250 shares of Philip Morris International stock in a transaction on Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.63, for a total value of $772,447.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 94,629 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,860,113.27. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Reginaldo Dobrowolski sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.69, for a total transaction of $181,380.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 9,726 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $882,050.94. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 15,250 shares of company stock worth $1,411,128 in the last quarter. 0.13% of the stock is 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.