Philip Morris International Inc. $PM Stock Holdings Cut by First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc.

Key Points

• First Fiduciary Investment Counsel cut its Philip Morris stake by 8.9% in the third quarter, selling 6,577 shares and retaining 67,365 shares valued at $12.855 million.
• Analysts remain broadly positive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $209.70; 10 analysts rate the stock a Buy and two recommend Hold.
• Philip Morris exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, while raising its quarterly dividend to $1.60, equivalent to a 3.2% annualized yield.

First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc. cut its holdings in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM - Free Report) by 8.9% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 67,365 shares of the company's stock after selling 6,577 shares during the quarter. Philip Morris International comprises approximately 2.5% of First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 16th largest position. First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc.'s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $12,855,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Philip Morris International during the 2nd quarter worth $29,000. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 60.2% during the 1st quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 189 shares of the company's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 109.2% in the 1st quarter. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC now owns 205 shares of the company's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. Kelly Lawrence W & Associates Inc. CA acquired a new stake in shares of Philip Morris International in the 2nd quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Kilter Group LLC bought a new stake in Philip Morris International in the second quarter worth $35,000. 78.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on PM. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $200.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Philip Morris International from $195.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Citigroup boosted their price target on Philip Morris International from $210.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. BTIG Research set a $221.00 price target on Philip Morris International and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Argus upped their price target on Philip Morris International from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $209.70.

Philip Morris International Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of PM stock opened at $202.63 on Thursday. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 12 month low of $142.11 and a 12 month high of $210.45. The business's 50 day moving average is $193.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $181.48. The company has a market cap of $315.82 billion, a PE ratio of 29.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.34.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 21st. The company reported $2.36 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.30 by $0.06. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 10.73% and a negative return on equity of 183.96%. The company had revenue of $11.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.32 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.24 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 8.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, October 26th. Investors of record on Friday, October 2nd were paid a $1.60 dividend. This represents a $6.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 2nd. This is a boost from Philip Morris International's previous quarterly dividend of $1.47. Philip Morris International's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 93.43%.

Philip Morris International Company Profile

Philip Morris International Inc NYSE: PM is a global tobacco and nicotine company headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut. It was established as an independent company in 2008 following the separation of Philip Morris International from Altria Group. The company develops, manufactures and markets tobacco, nicotine and other related consumer products primarily outside the United States.

Its portfolio includes internationally recognized cigarette brands such as Marlboro, Parliament, L&M, Chesterfield and Bond Street.

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