KBC Group NV Acquires 9,524 Shares of Philip Morris International Inc. $PM

KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 7.7% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 132,800 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 9,524 shares during the period. KBC Group NV’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $24,187,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in PM. WCM Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 24,968.0% in the 2nd quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 11,275,606 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,041,223,000 after acquiring an additional 11,230,626 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in Philip Morris International during the first quarter worth approximately $1,712,994,000. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in Philip Morris International by 26.4% during the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 21,840,422 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,466,730,000 after purchasing an additional 4,563,632 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 57.5% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 9,794,530 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,554,686,000 after purchasing an additional 3,575,158 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 111.1% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,002,216 shares of the company’s stock valued at $473,660,000 after purchasing an additional 1,580,368 shares during the last quarter. 78.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Philip Morris International Stock Performance

NYSE PM opened at $155.12 on Friday. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 52-week low of $116.12 and a 52-week high of $186.69. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $157.58 and its 200-day moving average price is $168.00. The company has a market cap of $241.47 billion, a PE ratio of 28.10, a P/E/G ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.43.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 28th. The company reported $1.59 earnings per share for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $8.12 billion during the quarter. Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 122.14% and a net margin of 9.33%. On average, analysts forecast that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, October 20th. Investors of record on Friday, October 3rd were paid a dividend of $1.47 per share. This is a positive change from Philip Morris International’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.35. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 3rd. This represents a $5.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.8%. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 106.52%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PM has been the topic of several analyst reports. Barclays cut their target price on Philip Morris International from $225.00 to $220.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. KGI Securities started coverage on shares of Philip Morris International in a research note on Monday, August 4th. They issued an “outperform” rating on the stock. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $177.00 to $166.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, September 5th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $195.00 price target on shares of Philip Morris International in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, November 9th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $194.00.

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.