Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) Stock Rated "Moderate Buy" by Sell-Side Brokerages

Key Points

• Philip Morris International received a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating from 12 analysts, including 10 buy ratings and two holds. The average 12-month price target is $209.70, with several firms recently raising their targets to between $215 and $225.
• The company reported quarterly EPS of $2.36, exceeding estimates of $2.30, while revenue reached $11.44 billion and increased 5.5% year over year. Analysts expect full-year EPS of approximately $8.32.
• Philip Morris increased its quarterly dividend to $1.60, or $6.40 annually, representing a 3.1% yield. Institutional investors own approximately 78.63% of the company’s shares.

Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM - Get Free Report) has been assigned a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the twelve ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and ten have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $209.70.

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Argus upped their price objective on Philip Morris International from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, October 26th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Philip Morris International from $205.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $210.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $200.00 to $215.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Philip Morris International from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b+)" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 8th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Philip Morris International

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 9.9% in the third quarter. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 620 shares of the company's stock valued at $118,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the period. Hughes Financial Services LLC increased its position in Philip Morris International by 8.4% during the third quarter. Hughes Financial Services LLC now owns 719 shares of the company's stock worth $150,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the period. Platt Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Philip Morris International by 2.1% during the second quarter. Platt Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,833 shares of the company's stock worth $512,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the period. Security Financial Services INC. increased its position in Philip Morris International by 2.2% during the third quarter. Security Financial Services INC. now owns 2,978 shares of the company's stock worth $568,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares during the period. Finally, Clearwater Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in Philip Morris International by 2.4% during the 1st quarter. Clearwater Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,798 shares of the company's stock valued at $463,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.63% of the company's stock.

Philip Morris International Price Performance

Shares of PM opened at $208.34 on Tuesday. Philip Morris International has a 1-year low of $142.11 and a 1-year high of $214.35. The stock has a market cap of $324.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.34. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $194.61 and a 200-day simple moving average of $182.14.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 21st. The company reported $2.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.30 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $11.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.32 billion. Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 183.96% and a net margin of 10.73%. Philip Morris International's revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.24 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Philip Morris International will post 8.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, October 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 2nd were given a $1.60 dividend. This is a boost from Philip Morris International's previous quarterly dividend of $1.47. This represents a $6.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 2nd. Philip Morris International's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 93.43%.

About Philip Morris International

Philip Morris International Inc NYSE: PM is a global tobacco and nicotine company headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut. It was established as an independent company in 2008 following the separation of Philip Morris International from Altria Group. The company develops, manufactures and markets tobacco, nicotine and other related consumer products primarily outside the United States.

Its portfolio includes internationally recognized cigarette brands such as Marlboro, Parliament, L&M, Chesterfield and Bond Street.

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