Whalen Wealth Management Inc. Decreases Position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Whalen Wealth Management Inc. lowered its position in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 20.5% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,574 shares of the company’s stock after selling 664 shares during the quarter. Whalen Wealth Management Inc.’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $312,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in PM. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in Philip Morris International by 79.3% in the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,878,158 shares of the company’s stock valued at $595,634,000 after purchasing an additional 2,599,684 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 16.3% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 13,234,478 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,341,050,000 after acquiring an additional 1,856,551 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its holdings in Philip Morris International by 3.1% in the 1st quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 60,217,039 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,517,085,000 after purchasing an additional 1,800,864 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors grew its position in Philip Morris International by 1.5% in the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 111,247,656 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,192,510,000 after acquiring an additional 1,684,992 shares during the period. Finally, Manning & Napier Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Philip Morris International during the 2nd quarter worth about $155,373,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Philip Morris International Trading Up 2.4 %

Philip Morris International stock opened at $131.72 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $124.39 and a two-hundred day moving average of $113.94. Philip Morris International Inc. has a twelve month low of $87.82 and a twelve month high of $134.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $204.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.91, a PEG ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.54.

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

Philip Morris International Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 26th were issued a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.10%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 26th. This is a positive change from Philip Morris International’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Philip Morris International’s payout ratio is currently 85.71%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, 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 directly owns 959,761 shares in the company, valued at $124,624,965.85. The trade was a 9.60 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Werner Barth sold 7,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.98, for a total transaction of $974,850.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 95,418 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,402,431.64. This trade represents a 7.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PM has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. StockNews.com raised Philip Morris International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “buy” rating and set a $145.00 price objective (up from $138.00) on shares of Philip Morris International in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $126.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $103.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Philip Morris International has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $131.50.

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.