Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV Acquires 25,110 Shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV increased its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 11.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 236,914 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 25,110 shares during the period. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $28,513,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. NewSquare Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 53.7% during the fourth quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 206 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Philip Morris International during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Knuff & Co LLC bought a new position in shares of Philip Morris International during the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Philip Morris International in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, Transce3nd LLC bought a new stake in shares of Philip Morris International in the fourth quarter worth $41,000. 78.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Philip Morris International Price Performance

PM stock opened at $170.09 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $156.90 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $138.96. The stock has a market cap of $264.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.46. Philip Morris International Inc. has a one year low of $95.88 and a one year high of $172.03.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.08. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 7.89% and a negative return on equity of 120.08%. The firm had revenue of $9.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.10 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.50 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 20th were paid a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 20th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.17%. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 111.34%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Philip Morris International

In related news, insider Lars Dahlgren sold 3,679 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.96, for a total transaction of $562,739.84. Following the sale, the insider now owns 26,828 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,103,610.88. This represents a 12.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Jacek Olczak sold 40,000 shares of Philip Morris International stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.87, for a total value of $5,954,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 547,426 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $81,495,308.62. This represents a 6.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 131,822 shares of company stock valued at $19,655,585 in the last ninety days. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have issued reports on PM. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $168.00 to $186.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Citigroup upped their target price on Philip Morris International from $163.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Argus raised Philip Morris International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $163.00.

Philip Morris International 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.