Philip Morris International Inc. (PM), with a market cap of $155.81 billion, is a leading tobacco company committed to delivering a smoke-free future. Headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut, the company is evolving its portfolio to include products beyond tobacco and nicotine. PM's product range features cigarettes and smoke-free alternatives like heat-not-burn products, vaporizers, and oral nicotine products, primarily under the IQOS and ZYN brands. The company is renowned for its flagship brand, Marlboro, which is the best-selling cigarette brand worldwide.
Philip Morris has underperformed the broader market over the last year. The stock has gained 8.1% over this time frame, while the broader S&P 500 Index ($SPX) has rallied nearly 26.9%. But in 2024, the gap narrowed, with PM stock rising nearly 7%, while the SPX is up 11.6% on a YTD basis.
Narrowing the focus, PM outperformed in comparison to the iShares US Consumer Staples ETF (IYK). The exchange-traded fund has gained 1.4% over the past year, significantly lagging PM’s performance. Moreover, the stock’s YTD gains are higher than the ETF's 6.2% returns during the same period.
On April 23, Philip Morris reported Q1 earnings that exceeded Wall Street's EPS estimates. The stock gained 3.8% on the day it released earnings and maintained an uptrend since then.
For the current fiscal year, ending in December, analysts expect PM to report an EPS growth of 4.7% to $6.29 on a diluted basis. The company’s earnings surprise history is mixed. It beat the consensus estimate in three of the last four quarters while missing forecasts on another occasion.
Among the 14 analysts covering PM stock, the consensus rating is a “Moderate Buy.” That’s based on eight “Strong Buy” ratings, one “Moderate Buy,” four “Holds,” and one “Strong Sell.”
This configuration has been fairly consistent over the past three months, with eight suggesting a “Strong Buy.”
On May 14, Gaurav Jain from Barclays maintained a “Buy” rating on Philip Morris with a price target of $110.00, which indicates a 9.7% upside from the current levels.
The mean price target of $106.50 represents a 6.3% premium to PM’s current price levels. The Street-high price target of $115 suggests an upside potential of 14.7%.
On the date of publication, Rashmi Kumari did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.
