Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) Upgraded by Wall Street Zen to Buy Rating

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM - Get Free Report) was upgraded by research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a note issued to investors on Thursday.

PM has been the subject of several other reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. 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. UBS Group upgraded Philip Morris International from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $130.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Barclays upped their price target on Philip Morris International from $175.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on Philip Morris International from $163.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Philip Morris International currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $169.20.

Philip Morris International Price Performance

Shares of PM stock traded up $3.00 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $178.23. The stock had a trading volume of 6,162,362 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,610,981. The firm has a market capitalization of $277.41 billion, a PE ratio of 39.52, a PEG ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.50. Philip Morris International has a twelve month low of $98.93 and a twelve month high of $178.70. The stock's 50 day moving average is $162.60 and its 200 day moving average is $143.89.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Philip Morris International news, insider Lars Dahlgren sold 3,679 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.96, for a total value of $562,739.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 26,828 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,103,610.88. This represents a 12.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Philip Morris International

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Perigon Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Philip Morris International by 0.4% in the first quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC now owns 14,087 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,236,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. TBH Global Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 0.9% during the 1st quarter. TBH Global Asset Management LLC now owns 6,932 shares of the company's stock worth $1,100,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. NFP Retirement Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 2.5% during the 1st quarter. NFP Retirement Inc. now owns 2,589 shares of the company's stock worth $411,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Capital Advisors Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Capital Advisors Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,005 shares of the company's stock worth $477,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Renasant Bank boosted its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 3.3% during the 1st quarter. Renasant Bank now owns 1,994 shares of the company's stock worth $317,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.63% 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.