Annex Advisory Services LLC Acquires 10,301 Shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Annex Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 77.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 23,681 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 10,301 shares during the period. Annex Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $2,850,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. White Lighthouse Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 71.4% during the 3rd quarter. White Lighthouse Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,999 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,457,000 after purchasing an additional 4,999 shares during the last quarter. Range Financial Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 504.9% in the fourth quarter. Range Financial Group LLC now owns 22,915 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,758,000 after buying an additional 19,127 shares in the last quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. increased its holdings in Philip Morris International by 3,553.3% during the third quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. now owns 206,959 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,125,000 after buying an additional 201,294 shares during the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC raised its position in Philip Morris International by 18.9% during the fourth quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 100,826 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,134,000 after acquiring an additional 16,035 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CWA Asset Management Group LLC lifted its stake in Philip Morris International by 37.5% in the fourth quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 24,200 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,912,000 after acquiring an additional 6,605 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Philip Morris International news, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 101,918 shares of Philip Morris International stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.85, for a total value of $13,234,052.30. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 959,761 shares in the company, valued at $124,624,965.85. The trade was a 9.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Werner Barth sold 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.98, for a total transaction of $974,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 95,418 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,402,431.64. This trade represents a 7.29 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on PM shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $118.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Philip Morris International from $126.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Stifel Nicolaus reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $145.00 target price (up from $138.00) on shares of Philip Morris International in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Barclays dropped their price target 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. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $103.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Philip Morris International presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $131.35.

Philip Morris International Stock Up 1.7 %

Shares of NYSE:PM opened at $121.88 on Monday. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 12-month low of $87.82 and a 12-month high of $134.15. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $125.50 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $121.33. The firm has a market cap of $189.51 billion, a PE ratio of 19.35, a PEG ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.54.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $1.91 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.82 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $9.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.67 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.51 EPS for the current year.

Philip Morris International Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 26th were issued a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.43%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 26th. 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.