Sovereign Financial Group Inc. Sells 2,110 Shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Sovereign Financial Group Inc. lessened its stake in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 38.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,342 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,110 shares during the period. Sovereign Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $314,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. PFG Investments LLC boosted its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. PFG Investments LLC now owns 5,951 shares of the company’s stock valued at $560,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares during the last quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC boosted its holdings in Philip Morris International by 8.2% in the 4th quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 1,453 shares of the company’s stock valued at $137,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 36,857 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,412,000 after buying an additional 112 shares during the period. Bluesphere Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Bluesphere Advisors LLC now owns 17,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,599,000 after buying an additional 113 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc. raised its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc. now owns 29,316 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,758,000 after buying an additional 113 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Philip Morris International Stock Performance

Shares of PM traded up $0.06 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $97.51. 3,960,335 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,724,651. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $92.76 and its 200-day moving average is $92.38. Philip Morris International Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $87.23 and a fifty-two week high of $100.70. The company has a market cap of $151.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.04, a P/E/G ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 0.60.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.09. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 8.58% and a negative return on equity of 113.26%. The company had revenue of $8.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.44 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.38 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.29 EPS for the current year.

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 9th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 21st were paid a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 20th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.33%. Philip Morris International’s payout ratio is 101.56%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Wilde Frederic De sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.42, for a total transaction of $1,928,400.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 178,447 shares in the company, valued at $17,205,859.74. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other Philip Morris International news, VP Reginaldo Dobrowolski sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.69, for a total value of $181,380.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 9,726 shares in the company, valued at $882,050.94. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Wilde Frederic De sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.42, for a total value of $1,928,400.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 178,447 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,205,859.74. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 35,250 shares of company stock valued at $3,339,528 in the last three months. 0.14% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on PM shares. Argus reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Philip Morris International in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. Societe Generale raised Philip Morris International from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $87.50 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 13th. UBS Group cut shares of Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $105.00 to $86.50 in a research report on Tuesday, January 23rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $108.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $105.50.

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.