Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC Trims Stake in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 3.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,712,295 shares of the company’s stock after selling 148,453 shares during the quarter. Philip Morris International makes up 1.5% of Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest holding. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC owned 0.24% of Philip Morris International worth $446,775,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. GQG Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 14.3% during the 4th quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 48,746,809 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,866,678,000 after purchasing an additional 6,092,558 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Philip Morris International in the 4th quarter worth $522,214,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in Philip Morris International by 21.0% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 16,070,482 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,934,083,000 after acquiring an additional 2,785,987 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 161.6% in the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,943,460 shares of the company’s stock valued at $235,936,000 after acquiring an additional 1,200,636 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 139,432,392 shares of the company’s stock worth $16,780,688,000 after acquiring an additional 1,167,810 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Philip Morris International Trading Up 0.1 %

Philip Morris International stock opened at $155.17 on Friday. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 12-month low of $87.82 and a 12-month high of $159.51. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $145.83 and a 200-day moving average price of $132.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $241.27 billion, a PE ratio of 34.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.53.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) 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 7.89%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 20th will be given 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 3.48%. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 119.73%.

Insider Activity

In other Philip Morris International news, SVP Yann Guerin sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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. This represents a 7.62 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Reginaldo Dobrowolski sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 in the company, valued at $3,117,354.12. The trade was a 19.38 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 131,822 shares of company stock valued at $19,655,585. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on PM shares. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on Philip Morris International in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 target price on the stock. Argus upgraded Philip Morris International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. UBS Group upped their price objective on Philip Morris International from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Philip Morris International has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $144.56.

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.