Retirement Systems of Alabama Sells 30,469 Shares of Philip Morris International Inc. $PM

Key Points

• Retirement Systems of Alabama cut its Philip Morris stake by 3.9%, selling 30,469 shares in the third quarter; it retained 757,760 shares valued at about $144.6 million.
• Philip Morris beat quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, reporting EPS of $2.36 and revenue of $11.44 billion; revenue rose 5.5% year over year.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend from $1.47 to $1.60 per share, equivalent to a 3.3% yield. Analysts’ consensus rating was “Moderate Buy,” with an average price target of $212.40.

Retirement Systems of Alabama decreased its stake in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM - Free Report) by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 757,760 shares of the company's stock after selling 30,469 shares during the quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama's holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $144,596,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in PM. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 9.9% in the third quarter. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 620 shares of the company's stock valued at $118,000 after buying an additional 56 shares during the period. Hughes Financial Services LLC increased its stake in Philip Morris International by 8.4% during the third quarter. Hughes Financial Services LLC now owns 719 shares of the company's stock valued at $150,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the period. Platt Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Philip Morris International by 2.1% during the second quarter. Platt Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,833 shares of the company's stock valued at $512,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the period. Security Financial Services INC. increased its stake in Philip Morris International by 2.2% during the third quarter. Security Financial Services INC. now owns 2,978 shares of the company's stock valued at $568,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares during the period. Finally, Shepherd Financial Partners LLC raised its holdings in Philip Morris International by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. Shepherd Financial Partners LLC now owns 1,365 shares of the company's stock valued at $260,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.63% of the company's stock.

Philip Morris International Stock Performance

Shares of Philip Morris International stock opened at $193.16 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $301.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.34. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $195.59 and its 200-day simple moving average is $182.93. Philip Morris International Inc. has a twelve month low of $146.35 and a twelve month high of $214.35.

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

Philip Morris International Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, October 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 2nd were paid a $1.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 2nd. This represents a $6.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.3%. This is an increase from Philip Morris International's previous quarterly dividend of $1.47. Philip Morris International's dividend payout ratio is currently 93.43%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on PM shares. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on 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 lifted their price objective on Philip Morris International from $205.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 3rd. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Philip Morris International from $210.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Barclays upped their target price on Philip Morris International from $205.00 to $225.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, BTIG Research set a $221.00 target price on Philip Morris International and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $212.40.

Philip Morris International Profile

Philip Morris International is a global tobacco and nicotine company that develops, manufactures and sells cigarettes and smoke-free products. Its cigarette brands include Marlboro in markets outside the United States, along with other regional and international brands.

The company's smoke-free portfolio includes IQOS heated tobacco products, ZYN nicotine pouches and VEEV e-vapor products. Philip Morris International sells its products in markets around the world, with availability varying by country and subject to local regulations.

Philip Morris International became an independent publicly traded company in 2008 after separating from Altria Group.

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