Elite Financial Inc. Takes Position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Elite Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 5,712 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $687,000. Philip Morris International accounts for approximately 0.4% of Elite Financial Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest position.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 139,432,392 shares of the company's stock valued at $16,780,688,000 after acquiring an additional 1,167,810 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors increased its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 122,584,210 shares of the company's stock valued at $14,752,926,000 after acquiring an additional 4,216,586 shares in the last quarter. GQG Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 14.3% in the 4th quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 48,746,809 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,866,678,000 after acquiring an additional 6,092,558 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 9.9% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 35,286,582 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,241,837,000 after acquiring an additional 3,185,258 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in Philip Morris International by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 17,276,790 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,079,262,000 after purchasing an additional 516,617 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.63% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PM has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Argus upgraded shares of Philip Morris International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. 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 report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, 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 report on Friday, April 25th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Philip Morris International has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $169.20.

Insider Buying and Selling at Philip Morris International

In other Philip Morris International news, insider Lars Dahlgren sold 3,679 shares of the 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 directly owns 26,828 shares in the company, valued at $4,103,610.88. This trade represents a 12.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company's stock.

Philip Morris International Trading Up 1.6%

Shares of NYSE:PM traded up $2.87 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $180.74. The company had a trading volume of 8,505,072 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,634,405. The stock has a market cap of $281.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.08, a P/E/G ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.50. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 52-week low of $98.93 and a 52-week high of $181.36. The company's 50 day moving average price is $165.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $145.62.

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

Philip Morris International Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 20th were given a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.99%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 20th. Philip Morris International's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 111.34%.

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.