Laurion Capital Management LP Boosts Stock Position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Laurion Capital Management LP lifted its holdings in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 67.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 95,000 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 38,107 shares during the quarter. Laurion Capital Management LP’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $11,433,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. J. Goldman & Co LP grew its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 291.9% in the fourth quarter. J. Goldman & Co LP now owns 9,304 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,120,000 after purchasing an additional 6,930 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 178.7% in the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,297,023 shares of the company’s stock valued at $156,081,000 after purchasing an additional 831,580 shares in the last quarter. Guardian Wealth Advisors LLC NC grew its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 40.0% in the fourth quarter. Guardian Wealth Advisors LLC NC now owns 4,229 shares of the company’s stock valued at $509,000 after purchasing an additional 1,209 shares in the last quarter. Graver Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Philip Morris International in the fourth quarter valued at $578,000. Finally, Greenline Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 6.2% in the fourth quarter. Greenline Partners LLC now owns 3,299 shares of the company’s stock valued at $397,000 after purchasing an additional 193 shares in the last quarter. 78.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Philip Morris International news, insider Lars Dahlgren sold 3,679 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.96, for a total value of $562,739.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 26,828 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,103,610.88. The trade was a 12.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Werner Barth sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.67, for a total transaction of $1,486,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 106,244 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,795,295.48. This represents a 8.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 131,822 shares of company stock worth $19,655,585. 0.13% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Philip Morris International Trading Down 1.4%

Shares of PM opened at $169.61 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $264.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.61, a P/E/G ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.50. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 12-month low of $98.93 and a 12-month high of $176.49. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $158.92 and a 200-day moving average price of $141.18.

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

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 20th were issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 20th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.18%. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio is presently 111.34%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on PM. UBS Group raised shares of Philip Morris International from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $130.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Friday, April 25th. StockNews.com raised shares of Philip Morris International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $182.00 price objective (up from $156.00) on shares of Philip Morris International in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $163.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $168.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Philip Morris International has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $166.33.

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.