The Goldman Sachs Group Raises Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) Price Target to $140.00

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) had its price target hoisted by The Goldman Sachs Group from $126.00 to $140.00 in a research report released on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The Goldman Sachs Group currently has a buy rating on the stock.

PM has been the topic of a number of other reports. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Monday, September 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Philip Morris International from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Philip Morris International from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Bank of America boosted their price target on Philip Morris International from $125.00 to $139.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on Philip Morris International from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $119.14.

Philip Morris International Price Performance

NYSE PM opened at $120.62 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $119.60 and its 200 day moving average price is $105.72. Philip Morris International has a 12 month low of $87.23 and a 12 month high of $128.22. The company has a market capitalization of $187.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.55.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The company reported $1.59 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.57 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $9.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.19 billion. Philip Morris International had a negative return on equity of 113.32% and a net margin of 9.41%. The business’s revenue was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.60 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Philip Morris International will post 6.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Philip Morris International Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 26th will be issued a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.48%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 26th. This is an increase from Philip Morris International’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 105.47%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Philip Morris International news, insider Wilde Frederic De sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.01, for a total value of $2,260,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 158,447 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,906,095.47. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, insider Massimo Andolina sold 9,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.35, for a total value of $1,038,150.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 85,629 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,877,305.15. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Wilde Frederic De sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.01, for a total transaction of $2,260,200.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 158,447 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,906,095.47. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.13% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Philip Morris International

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. GQG Partners LLC grew its holdings in Philip Morris International by 5,006.0% during the 1st quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 5,958,391 shares of the company’s stock valued at $545,908,000 after buying an additional 5,841,696 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors increased its position in Philip Morris International by 9.1% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 58,416,175 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,495,794,000 after purchasing an additional 4,869,272 shares in the last quarter. Lone Pine Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Philip Morris International during the 4th quarter worth about $282,785,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in Philip Morris International by 79.3% in the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,878,158 shares of the company’s stock valued at $595,634,000 after purchasing an additional 2,599,684 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in Philip Morris International by 5,045.1% in the 1st quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 2,122,729 shares of the company’s stock valued at $194,484,000 after purchasing an additional 2,081,472 shares in the last quarter. 78.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.