Ninety One North America Inc. Has $97.02 Million Stock Position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Ninety One North America Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM - Free Report) by 3.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 611,212 shares of the company's stock after selling 25,124 shares during the period. Philip Morris International comprises 6.5% of Ninety One North America Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest holding. Ninety One North America Inc.'s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $97,018,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

Philip Morris International Stock Performance

PM traded down $0.77 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $176.95. 2,010,467 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,001,950. The company's fifty day moving average price is $177.53 and its 200-day moving average price is $155.58. Philip Morris International Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $101.68 and a fifty-two week high of $186.69. The firm has a market capitalization of $275.42 billion, a PE ratio of 36.48, a P/E/G ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.51.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 negative return on equity of 122.40% and a net margin of 8.43%. Philip Morris International's quarterly revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.50 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

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 given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 27th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.05%. Philip Morris International's dividend payout ratio is 111.34%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on PM. Argus upgraded Philip Morris International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Needham & Company LLC started coverage on Philip Morris International in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. They set a "buy" rating on the stock. Barclays reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $220.00 price target (up previously from $205.00) on shares of Philip Morris International in a report on Friday, June 13th. UBS Group upgraded shares of Philip Morris International from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $130.00 to $170.00 in a report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $182.00 price objective (up previously from $156.00) on shares of Philip Morris International in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $180.73.

Philip Morris International Company 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.