Monument Capital Management Purchases 3,257 Shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Monument Capital Management lifted its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 103.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 6,419 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,257 shares during the period. Monument Capital Management’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $773,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PM. Creative Planning grew its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 5.6% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 365,549 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,378,000 after buying an additional 19,490 shares during the period. V Square Quantitative Management LLC lifted its stake in Philip Morris International by 110.4% in the third quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 4,144 shares of the company’s stock valued at $503,000 after buying an additional 2,174 shares in the last quarter. Stratos Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Philip Morris International by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Stratos Investment Management LLC now owns 4,952 shares of the company’s stock worth $601,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its holdings in Philip Morris International by 9.7% during the 3rd quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 592,619 shares of the company’s stock worth $71,944,000 after purchasing an additional 52,211 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AA Financial Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 7.9% in the 3rd quarter. AA Financial Advisors LLC now owns 8,629 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,048,000 after purchasing an additional 630 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PM has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com lowered Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Morgan Stanley began coverage on Philip Morris International in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays lowered their price target on Philip Morris International from $155.00 to $145.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $139.56.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Reginaldo Dobrowolski sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.88, for a total transaction of $749,400.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 20,799 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,117,354.12. This represents a 19.38 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Philip Morris International Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of PM opened at $150.60 on Monday. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 12 month low of $87.82 and a 12 month high of $151.22. The company has a market capitalization of $234.16 billion, a PE ratio of 33.39, a PEG ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.55. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $127.47 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $125.21.

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

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 26th were paid a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend 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 presently 119.73%.

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.