Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) Lifted to “Buy” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report released on Monday.

Separately, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $108.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $107.80.

Philip Morris International Stock Up 1.6 %

NYSE:PM opened at $113.22 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $176.01 billion, a PE ratio of 22.11, a P/E/G ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.58. Philip Morris International has a 52-week low of $87.23 and a 52-week high of $113.68. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $102.99 and its 200 day moving average price is $96.40.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The company reported $1.59 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.57 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $9.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.19 billion. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 10.92% and a negative return on equity of 113.32%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.60 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Philip Morris International will post 6.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 8th. Investors of record on Friday, June 21st were issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 21st. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.59%. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio is presently 101.56%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Philip Morris International

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PM. Bank of Nova Scotia grew its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 283.5% during the fourth quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 1,186,082 shares of the company’s stock worth $111,583,000 after buying an additional 876,790 shares in the last quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in Philip Morris International during the first quarter valued at about $5,634,000. Gilliland Jeter Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Philip Morris International during the fourth quarter worth about $1,251,000. Nebula Research & Development LLC acquired a new position in shares of Philip Morris International in the 4th quarter valued at about $857,000. Finally, AJOVista LLC acquired a new stake in Philip Morris International during the 4th quarter worth approximately $137,000. 78.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Philip Morris International Company 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.