Rafferty Asset Management LLC Sells 27,735 Shares of Philip Morris International Inc. $PM

Key Points

• Rafferty Asset Management LLC has reduced its stake in Philip Morris International by 20.6%, now holding 107,217 shares valued at approximately $17 million.
• Other institutional investors, such as Goldman Sachs and Wellington Management, have increased their positions significantly during the 1st quarter, indicating a mixed sentiment towards the stock.
• Philip Morris International reported $1.91 EPS for the last quarter, surpassing analysts' expectations, despite a revenue of $10.14 billion that fell short of forecasts.

Rafferty Asset Management LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM - Free Report) by 20.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 107,217 shares of the company's stock after selling 27,735 shares during the quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC's holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $17,019,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of PM. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Philip Morris International during the first quarter worth about $1,712,994,000. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 26.4% during the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 21,840,422 shares of the company's stock worth $3,466,730,000 after purchasing an additional 4,563,632 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 19,986.5% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,486,928 shares of the company's stock worth $712,210,000 after purchasing an additional 4,464,590 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 57.5% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 9,794,530 shares of the company's stock worth $1,554,686,000 after purchasing an additional 3,575,158 shares during the period. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 22.2% during the first quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 9,018,628 shares of the company's stock worth $1,431,527,000 after buying an additional 1,635,636 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.63% of the company's stock.

Philip Morris International Price Performance

PM stock traded up $1.38 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $167.15. The company had a trading volume of 5,357,997 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,950,581. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $172.04 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $166.75. The company has a market capitalization of $260.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.78, a PEG ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.48. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 52 week low of $116.12 and a 52 week high of $186.69.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The company reported $1.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.86 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $10.14 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.33 billion. Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 120.86% and a net margin of 9.03%.The business's revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.59 earnings per share. Philip Morris International has set its Q3 2025 guidance at 2.080-2.130 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 EPS for the current year.

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 27th were paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 27th. Philip Morris International's payout ratio is currently 102.66%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PM has been the subject of a number of research reports. Citigroup reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of Philip Morris International in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. UBS Group increased their price objective on Philip Morris International from $170.00 to $181.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. Barclays decreased their price objective on Philip Morris International from $225.00 to $220.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Bank of America increased their price objective on Philip Morris International from $182.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Philip Morris International in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. They set a "buy" rating and a $220.00 price objective for the company. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Philip Morris International has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $186.27.

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.