Vest Financial LLC Increases Stake in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Vest Financial LLC grew its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 73.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 15,315 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,487 shares during the quarter. Vest Financial LLC’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $2,431,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Philip Morris International by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 139,432,392 shares of the company’s stock worth $16,780,688,000 after buying an additional 1,167,810 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors raised its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 122,584,210 shares of the company’s stock worth $14,752,926,000 after acquiring an additional 4,216,586 shares during the period. GQG Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 14.3% during the 4th quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 48,746,809 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,866,678,000 after acquiring an additional 6,092,558 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 9.9% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 35,286,582 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,241,837,000 after acquiring an additional 3,185,258 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 17,276,790 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,079,262,000 after purchasing an additional 516,617 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Philip Morris International Price Performance

Shares of Philip Morris International stock opened at $181.77 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $282.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.52. The business has a 50-day moving average of $167.81 and a 200 day moving average of $147.58. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 12 month low of $98.93 and a 12 month high of $183.94.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last posted 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. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 7.89% and a negative return on equity of 120.08%. The business had revenue of $9.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.10 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.50 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on PM. Barclays lifted their target price 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, May 2nd. Needham & Company LLC began coverage on shares of Philip Morris International in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Citigroup upped their price objective on Philip Morris International from $163.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Bank of America raised their target price on Philip Morris International from $182.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Philip Morris International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Philip Morris International has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $175.30.

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.