Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC Invests $1.94 Million in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 16,127 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,941,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Meridian Wealth Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. Meridian Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,781 shares of the company's stock valued at $214,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC grew its position in Philip Morris International by 53.7% in the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 206 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV lifted its holdings in Philip Morris International by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 3,628 shares of the company's stock worth $437,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the period. Balboa Wealth Partners raised its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Balboa Wealth Partners now owns 3,712 shares of the company's stock worth $447,000 after buying an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cravens & Co Advisors LLC lifted its position in Philip Morris International by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Cravens & Co Advisors LLC now owns 10,052 shares of the company's stock worth $1,210,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the period. 78.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Philip Morris International Trading Down 1.4 %

PM stock traded down $2.39 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $169.61. The stock had a trading volume of 4,733,416 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,565,801. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 52 week low of $98.93 and a 52 week high of $176.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $264.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.61, a P/E/G ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.50. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $158.61 and a 200 day simple moving average of $140.79.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.69 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.08. Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 120.08% and a net margin of 7.89%. The business had revenue of $9.30 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.10 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.50 EPS. Philip Morris International's revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 EPS for the current year.

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $175.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $182.00 price objective (up from $156.00) on shares of Philip Morris International in a report on Thursday, April 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. StockNews.com upgraded Philip Morris International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $163.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $166.33.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Yann Guerin sold 2,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.28, for a total value of $378,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 30,308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,584,994.24. This represents a 7.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Lars Dahlgren sold 3,679 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.96, for a total transaction of $562,739.84. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 26,828 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,103,610.88. This represents a 12.06 % decrease in their position. 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 90 days. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.