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

Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) was the recipient 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. Approximately 0.6% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 4,990,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.8 days.

Philip Morris International Stock Performance

NYSE PM traded up $0.20 on Friday, reaching $120.00. 1,104,925 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,406,765. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $125.67 and a 200-day moving average price of $121.05. The firm has a market cap of $186.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.07, a P/E/G ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.54. Philip Morris International has a fifty-two week low of $87.82 and a fifty-two week high of $134.15.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $1.91 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.82 by $0.09. The business 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 business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.67 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Philip Morris International will post 6.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 26th were given a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 26th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.50%. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 85.71%.

Insider Transactions at Philip Morris International

In other Philip Morris International news, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 101,918 shares of the company’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 transaction, the chairman now directly owns 959,761 shares in the company, valued at $124,624,965.85. This represents a 9.60 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal 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 on 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 owns 95,418 shares in the company, valued at $12,402,431.64. The trade was a 7.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Philip Morris International

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. boosted its position in Philip Morris International by 457.5% during the third quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 223 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 183 shares in the last quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC raised its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 203.8% during the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 240 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 161 shares during the period. Concord Wealth Partners lifted its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 2,709.1% during the 3rd quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 309 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 298 shares in the last quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Philip Morris International in the 3rd quarter valued at $54,000. Finally, Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in Philip Morris International in the 4th quarter worth $54,000. 78.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on PM shares. Barclays dropped their price objective 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. Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $145.00 price objective (up previously from $138.00) on shares of Philip Morris International in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $103.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on Philip Morris International in a research report on Thursday. They set an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 price target on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price 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. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $131.35.

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.