Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) Short Interest Down 19.1% in December

Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) was the target of a large decline in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 9,210,000 shares, a decline of 19.1% from the December 15th total of 11,390,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 4,990,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.8 days. Currently, 0.6% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $145.00 target price (up from $138.00) on shares of Philip Morris International in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Philip Morris International from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on Philip Morris International from $118.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Morgan Stanley began coverage on Philip Morris International in a research report on Thursday. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 price target for the company. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on Philip Morris International from $155.00 to $145.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Philip Morris International currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $131.35.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Philip Morris International news, insider Werner Barth sold 7,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.98, for a total value of $974,850.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 95,418 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,402,431.64. This trade represents a 7.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 101,918 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chairman now owns 959,761 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $124,624,965.85. This represents a 9.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.14% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Philip Morris International

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PM. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 457.5% during the 3rd quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 223 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 183 shares in the last quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC increased its position in Philip Morris International by 203.8% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 240 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares during the last quarter. Concord Wealth Partners raised its stake in Philip Morris International by 2,709.1% during the third 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. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Philip Morris International during the third quarter valued at $54,000. Finally, Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new position in Philip Morris International during the fourth quarter valued at $54,000. 78.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Philip Morris International Stock Up 1.7 %

PM stock traded up $2.08 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $121.88. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 5,165,969 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,837,312. Philip Morris International has a 12 month low of $87.82 and a 12 month high of $134.15. The company has a 50 day moving average of $125.50 and a two-hundred day moving average of $121.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $189.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.54.

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

Philip Morris International Announces Dividend

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

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.