Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management Boosts Stake in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Key Points

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Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management lifted its holdings in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM - Free Report) by 928.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 109,466 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 98,825 shares during the period. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management's holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $17,376,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in PM. Pacifica Partners Inc. grew its holdings in Philip Morris International by 115.0% during the 1st quarter. Pacifica Partners Inc. now owns 215 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Philip Morris International in the 1st quarter worth about $35,000. Ball & Co Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Philip Morris International in the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. bought a new position in Philip Morris International in the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Inlight Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Philip Morris International in the 1st quarter worth about $38,000. 78.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Philip Morris International Price Performance

PM stock traded down $1.09 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $162.96. 7,552,974 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,566,090. The firm has a market cap of $253.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.98, a PEG ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.49. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $177.55 and its 200-day simple moving average is $161.60. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 1-year low of $113.15 and a 1-year high of $186.69.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The company reported $1.91 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.86 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $10.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.33 billion. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 9.03% and a negative return on equity of 120.86%. The firm's revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.59 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Philip Morris International Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 27th were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 27th. Philip Morris International's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 102.66%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on PM. Needham & Company LLC restated a "buy" rating and issued a $195.00 target price on shares of Philip Morris International in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and set a $182.00 price target (up previously from $156.00) on shares of Philip Morris International in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $170.00 to $181.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Stifel Nicolaus upped 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. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Philip Morris International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Sunday, July 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $186.27.

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.