Kovack Advisors Inc. Purchases 203 Shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Kovack Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 7,013 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 203 shares during the quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $851,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. White Lighthouse Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Philip Morris International by 71.4% during the 3rd quarter. White Lighthouse Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,999 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,457,000 after purchasing an additional 4,999 shares during the last quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 25.4% during the first quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 34,390 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,151,000 after purchasing an additional 6,974 shares in the last quarter. Kennebec Savings Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Philip Morris International during the third quarter valued at $692,000. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Philip Morris International by 17.9% in the 2nd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 31,591 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,203,000 after buying an additional 4,793 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Burke & Herbert Bank & Trust Co. raised its position in Philip Morris International by 68.0% in the 2nd quarter. Burke & Herbert Bank & Trust Co. now owns 20,896 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,117,000 after buying an additional 8,455 shares during the last quarter. 78.63% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Philip Morris International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Bank of America increased their price target on Philip Morris International from $125.00 to $139.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Philip Morris International from $103.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $145.00 target price (up previously from $138.00) on shares of Philip Morris International in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $127.85.

Insider Activity at Philip Morris International

In related news, insider Werner Barth sold 7,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.98, for a total value of $974,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 95,418 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,402,431.64. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 101,918 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.85, for a total value of $13,234,052.30. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 959,761 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $124,624,965.85. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Werner Barth sold 7,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.98, for a total transaction of $974,850.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 95,418 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,402,431.64. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.13% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Philip Morris International Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of PM opened at $125.24 on Thursday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $124.21 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $113.02. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 52 week low of $87.82 and a 52 week high of $134.15. The stock has a market cap of $194.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.88, a PEG ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.54.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $1.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.82 by $0.09. Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 117.94% and a net margin of 10.35%. The company had revenue of $9.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.68 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.67 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 26th were given a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.31%. This is an increase from Philip Morris International’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 26th. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 85.71%.

Philip Morris International 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.