BNP Paribas Financial Markets Buys 454,114 Shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its position in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM - Free Report) by 19.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,737,021 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 454,114 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets owned approximately 0.18% of Philip Morris International worth $329,400,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. NewSquare Capital LLC grew its holdings in Philip Morris International by 53.7% during the fourth quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 206 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the period. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Philip Morris International during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Knuff & Co LLC bought a new position in shares of Philip Morris International during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in Philip Morris International in the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, Transce3nd LLC bought a new stake in Philip Morris International during the 4th quarter worth approximately $41,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.63% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on PM. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $175.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday. Argus raised Philip Morris International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. UBS Group raised Philip Morris International from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $130.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Citigroup lifted their target price on Philip Morris International from $163.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Philip Morris International from $168.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Philip Morris International has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $166.33.

Philip Morris International Price Performance

Shares of NYSE PM traded up $0.90 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $174.09. 4,076,702 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,551,922. The company's 50 day moving average is $157.95 and its 200 day moving average is $140.18. Philip Morris International Inc. has a one year low of $97.18 and a one year high of $175.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $270.98 billion, a PE ratio of 38.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.50.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.69 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $9.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.10 billion. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 7.89% and a negative return on equity of 120.08%. Philip Morris International's quarterly revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.50 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 EPS for the current year.

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 20th were given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 20th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.10%. Philip Morris International's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 111.34%.

Insider Activity

In other Philip Morris International news, CFO Emmanuel Babeau sold 30,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.85, for a total transaction of $4,465,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 139,105 shares in the company, valued at $20,705,779.25. The trade was a 17.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 40,643 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.06, for a total value of $6,058,245.58. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 561,349 shares in the company, valued at approximately $83,674,681.94. The trade was a 6.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 131,822 shares of company stock valued at $19,655,585 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.13% of the company's stock.

About Philip Morris International

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.