Cornerstone Advisors LLC Grows Stake in Philip Morris International Inc. $PM

Cornerstone Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 4.6% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 65,900 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,900 shares during the quarter. Cornerstone Advisors LLC’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $12,002,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI raised its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 21.5% in the 2nd quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 26,635 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,851,000 after acquiring an additional 4,721 shares in the last quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 10.9% during the second quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 111,741 shares of the company’s stock worth $20,351,000 after purchasing an additional 10,980 shares in the last quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 295.8% during the second quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 67,717 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,333,000 after purchasing an additional 50,610 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 74.6% in the second quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 79,215 shares of the company’s stock worth $14,427,000 after purchasing an additional 33,840 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Keyvantage Wealth LLC raised its stake in Philip Morris International by 33.7% in the second quarter. Keyvantage Wealth LLC now owns 2,039 shares of the company’s stock valued at $371,000 after purchasing an additional 514 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on PM shares. Morgan Stanley set a $175.00 target price on shares of Philip Morris International and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Philip Morris International in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Philip Morris International in a research report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Philip Morris International in a research note on Thursday, September 4th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $195.00 price target on shares of Philip Morris International in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $194.00.

Philip Morris International Stock Performance

Shares of Philip Morris International stock opened at $155.35 on Friday. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 52-week low of $116.12 and a 52-week high of $186.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $241.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a fifty day moving average of $157.45 and a 200-day moving average of $167.88.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, March 28th. The company reported $1.59 EPS for the quarter. The company had revenue of $8.12 billion for the quarter. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 9.33% and a negative return on equity of 122.14%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Philip Morris International Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, October 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 3rd were issued a $1.47 dividend. This is an increase from Philip Morris International’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.35. This represents a $5.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 3rd. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 106.52%.

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.