Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) Rating Increased to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM - Free Report) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Sunday.

Several other equities research analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $188.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. UBS Group set a $181.00 target price on Philip Morris International and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Barclays raised their price objective on Philip Morris International from $220.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Philip Morris International from $168.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $182.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $186.73.

Philip Morris International Price Performance

Philip Morris International stock traded down $0.59 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $164.68. 9,891,314 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,730,863. Philip Morris International has a 12 month low of $109.37 and a 12 month high of $186.69. The business has a 50 day moving average of $179.21 and a two-hundred day moving average of $159.59. The firm has a market capitalization of $256.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.51.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The company reported $1.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.86 by $0.05. Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 120.86% and a net margin of 10.57%. The company had revenue of $10.14 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.33 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.59 earnings per share. Philip Morris International's quarterly revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Philip Morris International will post 7.14 EPS for the current year.

Philip Morris International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 27th were issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 27th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.28%. Philip Morris International's payout ratio is currently 111.34%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Philip Morris International

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in Philip Morris International during the first quarter worth about $1,712,994,000. GQG Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 14.3% in the 4th quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 48,746,809 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,866,678,000 after purchasing an additional 6,092,558 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in 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 acquiring an additional 4,563,632 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in 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 buying an additional 4,464,590 shares during the period. Finally, Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC raised its position in Philip Morris International by 372.2% in the fourth quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 5,453,285 shares of the company's stock valued at $656,303,000 after purchasing an additional 4,298,530 shares during the period. 78.63% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.