Financial Counselors Inc. Decreases Stock Position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Financial Counselors Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM - Free Report) by 4.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 296,290 shares of the company's stock after selling 14,165 shares during the quarter. Financial Counselors Inc.'s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $47,030,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in PM. Pacifica Partners Inc. increased its position 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 buying an additional 115 shares in the last quarter. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Philip Morris International in the first quarter worth about $35,000. Knuff & Co LLC purchased a new position in shares of Philip Morris International in the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Ball & Co Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Philip Morris International in the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Ameriflex Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Philip Morris International in the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. 78.63% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Needham & Company LLC assumed coverage on Philip Morris International in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. They issued a "buy" rating for the company. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Philip Morris International in a research note on Wednesday. They issued a "buy" rating and a $220.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group upgraded Philip Morris International from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $130.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Philip Morris International from $163.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price objective on Philip Morris International from $182.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $180.73.

Philip Morris International Stock Performance

Philip Morris International stock traded down $1.19 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $176.53. 1,842,800 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,616,314. The firm has a market capitalization of $274.77 billion, a PE ratio of 36.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.51. Philip Morris International Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $101.62 and a fifty-two week high of $186.69. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $177.53 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $155.58.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $9.30 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.10 billion. Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 122.40% and a net margin of 8.43%. Philip Morris International's revenue for the quarter was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.50 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Philip Morris International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 27th will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 27th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.06%. Philip Morris International's dividend payout ratio is currently 111.34%.

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.