Lord Abbett & CO. LLC Increases Position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Lord Abbett & CO. LLC lifted its position in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 0.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 2,379,100 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 5,821 shares during the period. Philip Morris International accounts for approximately 0.9% of Lord Abbett & CO. LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest holding. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC owned approximately 0.15% of Philip Morris International worth $288,823,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. DGS Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Philip Morris International during the third quarter valued at about $226,000. Garden State Investment Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Philip Morris International during the 3rd quarter valued at about $209,000. American Trust acquired a new position in Philip Morris International during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $214,000. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 3.0% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 13,000,570 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,560,752,000 after purchasing an additional 376,406 shares during the period. Finally, Synovus Financial Corp increased its stake in Philip Morris International by 15.9% during the 3rd quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 92,177 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,190,000 after buying an additional 12,670 shares during the period. 78.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Philip Morris International Stock Down 0.3 %

PM opened at $126.62 on Friday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $127.50 and a 200-day simple moving average of $117.79. The firm has a market cap of $196.87 billion, a PE ratio of 20.10, a P/E/G ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 0.53. Philip Morris International Inc. 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 results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $1.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 net margin of 10.35% and a negative return on equity of 117.94%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.67 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 26th will be given a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.26%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 26th. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 85.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 101,918 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 959,761 shares in the company, valued at approximately $124,624,965.85. This represents a 9.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Werner Barth sold 7,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.98, for a total value of $974,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly 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. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on PM. Barclays lifted their price objective on Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Philip Morris International from $126.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $118.50 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “buy” rating and set a $145.00 price target (up from $138.00) on shares of Philip Morris International in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Philip Morris International presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $131.50.

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.