VeraBank N.A. Trims Stock Position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

VeraBank N.A. decreased its holdings in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 4.1% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 6,123 shares of the company’s stock after selling 261 shares during the period. VeraBank N.A.’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $737,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. raised its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 457.5% in the 3rd quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 223 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 183 shares during the period. Dunhill Financial LLC increased its stake in Philip Morris International by 203.8% during the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 240 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 161 shares during the last quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Philip Morris International in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Concord Wealth Partners lifted its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 2,709.1% in the 3rd quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 309 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 298 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Asset Dedication LLC grew its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 55.5% during the 4th quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 412 shares of the company’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 147 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Reginaldo Dobrowolski sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.88, for a total value of $749,400.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 20,799 shares in the company, valued at $3,117,354.12. This trade represents a 19.38 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently commented on PM shares. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Philip Morris International in a report on Thursday, January 16th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 price target on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price 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. StockNews.com lowered shares of Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Barclays lowered their price target on Philip Morris International from $155.00 to $145.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on Philip Morris International from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Philip Morris International presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $139.56.

Philip Morris International Price Performance

Philip Morris International stock opened at $150.60 on Friday. Philip Morris International Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $87.82 and a fifty-two week high of $151.22. The company has a market cap of $234.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.55. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $127.47 and its 200-day simple moving average is $125.14.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.49 by $0.06. Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 120.08% and a net margin of 9.24%. On average, analysts expect that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 26th were given a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 26th. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 119.73%.

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.