Merit Financial Group LLC Increases Holdings in Philip Morris International Inc. $PM

Merit Financial Group LLC raised its stake in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 5.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 149,678 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,921 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $24,278,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of PM. Calamos Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Philip Morris International by 16.4% during the 3rd quarter. Calamos Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,438 shares of the company’s stock valued at $882,000 after purchasing an additional 768 shares during the last quarter. Sax Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 5.1% in the third quarter. Sax Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 9,598 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,557,000 after buying an additional 462 shares in the last quarter. Lewis Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 1.6% in the third quarter. Lewis Asset Management LLC now owns 5,796 shares of the company’s stock worth $940,000 after buying an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Philip Morris International by 3.4% during the third quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. now owns 6,696 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,086,000 after buying an additional 223 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Baron Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Philip Morris International by 18.8% during the third quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,096 shares of the company’s stock valued at $340,000 after acquiring an additional 332 shares in the last quarter. 78.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Philip Morris International Stock Up 0.0%

NYSE PM opened at $161.99 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $154.43 and a 200-day moving average price of $163.35. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 52 week low of $116.12 and a 52 week high of $186.69. The firm has a market capitalization of $252.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.35, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 0.42.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 28th. The company reported $1.59 EPS for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $8.12 billion during the quarter. Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 122.14% and a net margin of 9.33%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 7.14 EPS for the current year.

Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 26th will be given a dividend of $1.47 per share. This represents a $5.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 26th. Philip Morris International’s payout ratio is presently 106.52%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on PM shares. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Philip Morris International in a research report on Thursday, September 4th. Morgan Stanley set a $175.00 price target on Philip Morris International and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Philip Morris International in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Philip Morris International from $190.00 to $185.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 26th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $180.00 target price on shares of Philip Morris International in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Philip Morris International has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $189.00.

Philip Morris International Company Profile

Philip Morris International Inc (NYSE: PM) is a global tobacco company that manufactures and sells cigarettes, other nicotine-containing products and a growing portfolio of smoke-free alternatives for adult smokers. The firm traces its corporate roots to the 19th century Philip Morris enterprise and was established as an independent, publicly traded company following a 2008 separation from what is now Altria. Since the spin-off, the company has focused on serving international markets outside the United States.

PMI’s product mix includes traditional combustible cigarettes as well as smoke-free offerings such as heated tobacco systems and other reduced-risk products.