Philip Morris International Inc. $PM Holdings Cut by Verity Asset Management Inc.

Key Points

• Verity Asset Management cut its stake in Philip Morris by 49.1%, selling 10,852 shares to finish the quarter with 11,244 shares valued at $1.804 million.
• Insider sales: CEO Jacek Olczak sold 80,000 shares (~$14.57M; an 11.23% reduction) and CFO Emmanuel Babeau sold 33,800 shares (~$6.14M; a 17.05% reduction), leaving insiders with 0.13% ownership.
• Philip Morris beat Q1 estimates with EPS of $1.96 (vs. $1.83) and revenue of $10.15B (vs. $9.95B), issued FY2026 EPS guidance of 8.360–8.510, and pays a $1.47 quarterly dividend (annual $5.88, yield 3.5%, DPR 82.7%).

Verity Asset Management Inc. decreased its stake in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM - Free Report) by 49.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,244 shares of the company's stock after selling 10,852 shares during the quarter. Verity Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $1,804,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of PM. Marquette Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 1,677.8% during the 3rd quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 160 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares in the last quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Philip Morris International by 96.5% in the 3rd quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC now owns 167 shares of the company's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Richards Merrill & Peterson Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Philip Morris International in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Philip Morris International in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, FNY Investment Advisers LLC bought a new stake in Philip Morris International in the third quarter valued at about $33,000. Institutional investors own 78.63% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on PM shares. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $205.00 to $190.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 17th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Philip Morris International from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, January 10th. Needham & Company LLC restated a "buy" rating and issued a $200.00 price objective on shares of Philip Morris International in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $181.50 to $168.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 17th. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $192.56.

Insider Transactions at Philip Morris International

In other news, CEO Jacek Olczak sold 80,000 shares of Philip Morris International stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $182.18, for a total value of $14,574,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 632,344 shares of the company's stock, valued at $115,200,429.92. This trade represents a 11.23% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Emmanuel Babeau sold 33,800 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $181.61, for a total transaction of $6,138,418.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 164,463 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,868,125.43. This represents a 17.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company's stock.

Philip Morris International Price Performance

PM stock traded up $3.60 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $166.31. The company's stock had a trading volume of 397,374 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,175,499. Philip Morris International Inc. has a twelve month low of $142.11 and a twelve month high of $191.30. The company's fifty day moving average price is $167.98 and its 200 day moving average price is $164.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $259.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.38, a PEG ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 0.43.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The company reported $1.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.83 by $0.13. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 13.42% and a negative return on equity of 142.02%. The firm had revenue of $10.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.95 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.69 EPS. The company's revenue was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Philip Morris International has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.360-8.510 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.020-2.070 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 8.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 19th were given a $1.47 dividend. This represents a $5.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 19th. Philip Morris International's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 82.70%.

About Philip Morris International

Philip Morris International Inc NYSE: PM is a global tobacco company that manufactures and sells cigarettes, other nicotine-containing products and a growing portfolio of smoke-free alternatives for adult smokers. The firm traces its corporate roots to the 19th century Philip Morris enterprise and was established as an independent, publicly traded company following a 2008 separation from what is now Altria. Since the spin-off, the company has focused on serving international markets outside the United States.

PMI's product mix includes traditional combustible cigarettes as well as smoke-free offerings such as heated tobacco systems and other reduced-risk products.

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