Mechanics Bank Trust Department Trims Position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Mechanics Bank Trust Department trimmed its position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 10.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 21,979 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,653 shares during the period. Mechanics Bank Trust Department’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $2,645,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. FMR LLC increased its stake in Philip Morris International by 40.9% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 23,168,446 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,812,649,000 after purchasing an additional 6,721,094 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 57.2% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 9,241,612 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,121,932,000 after buying an additional 3,363,454 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 161.6% in the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,943,460 shares of the company’s stock worth $235,936,000 after buying an additional 1,200,636 shares during the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 14,611.4% in the third quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 1,173,531 shares of the company’s stock worth $142,467,000 after buying an additional 1,165,554 shares during the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 13,666.6% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 999,729 shares of the company’s stock worth $121,367,000 after purchasing an additional 992,467 shares in the last quarter. 78.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Philip Morris International Trading Up 1.7 %

Shares of PM opened at $121.88 on Monday. Philip Morris International Inc. has a twelve month low of $87.82 and a twelve month high of $134.15. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $125.50 and its 200-day simple moving average is $121.33. The company has a market cap of $189.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.54.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $1.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.82 by $0.09. Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 117.94% and a net margin of 10.35%. The firm had revenue of $9.91 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.68 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.67 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 26th were paid a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.43%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 26th. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio is presently 85.71%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on PM. Morgan Stanley began coverage on Philip Morris International in a research note on Thursday. They set an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $103.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $118.50 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on Philip Morris International from $118.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $131.35.

Insider Activity at Philip Morris International

In other Philip Morris International news, insider Werner Barth sold 7,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.98, for a total value of $974,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 95,418 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,402,431.64. This represents a 7.29 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 101,918 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.85, for a total value of $13,234,052.30. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 959,761 shares in the company, valued at approximately $124,624,965.85. This represents a 9.60 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.