Axecap Investments LLC Trims Position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Axecap Investments LLC reduced its position in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM - Free Report) by 14.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,247 shares of the company's stock after selling 1,854 shares during the period. Philip Morris International makes up approximately 1.5% of Axecap Investments LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest position. Axecap Investments LLC's holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $1,785,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Lloyd Advisory Services LLC. grew its position in Philip Morris International by 3.3% in the first quarter. Lloyd Advisory Services LLC. now owns 2,032 shares of the company's stock worth $323,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Omnia Family Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Omnia Family Wealth LLC now owns 3,851 shares of the company's stock valued at $469,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Sonora Investment Management Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. Sonora Investment Management Group LLC now owns 11,240 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,784,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares during the period. Meridian Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Meridian Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,781 shares of the company's stock worth $214,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Finally, NewSquare Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 53.7% in the fourth quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 206 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.63% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on PM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Philip Morris International from $163.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Argus upgraded shares of Philip Morris International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. UBS Group raised shares of Philip Morris International from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $130.00 to $170.00 in a report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $205.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Philip Morris International currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $176.80.

Philip Morris International Price Performance

Shares of Philip Morris International stock traded up $0.06 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $184.16. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,771,959 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,600,429. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $169.95 and a 200-day moving average price of $148.87. The stock has a market cap of $286.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.74, a P/E/G ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.52. Philip Morris International Inc. has a one year low of $98.93 and a one year high of $185.08.

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

Philip Morris International Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Friday, June 27th will be issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.93%. Philip Morris International's payout ratio 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.