Shares of Philip Morris International (PM) reacted positively to the fourth quarter’s earnings report. PM-related firms’ stocks rose 8.77% for the week, with a 3.63% jump for the month and a 21.28% rise for the quarter, while its past yearly performance rate touched -1.67%. PM’s business is exceptionally stable, and the only competitor to its traditional tobacco products is IQOS, which is also produced by Philip Morris. The IQOS product is notably more popular than other competitors’ similar products.
In developed countries, the pandemic has increased tobacco consumption while it has decreased it in developing countries. As a result, the demand for cigarettes in developing countries is much higher. Over the last quarter of 2020, total sales decreased 8.2%, and underlying income decreased 3.5%.
EBITDA margin for Philip Morris increased by 131 basis points to 40.8% in 2020. Furthermore, the strongest growth in the indicator occurred in Europe, while prices for products rose by 1% in Western Europe and 6% in Eastern Europe. Additionally, the business was not going well in Asia and Africa, including a decline in duty-free sales.
Philip Morris International (PM) also expects another increase in margins, resulting from IQOS sales increasing by 1.2 million units in the IV quarter of 2020, bringing the total number of IQOS users to 17.6 million for the year. Based on annual sales and revenue averages, IQOS accounted for 10.8% of total sales and 23.8% of total revenue in the IV quarter, respectively. This shows an increase in interest in the products.
Philip Morris International Inc. (PM) is trading at an average price of $81.44. A distance from its 52-week high at -4.64% and a 52-week low of 53.53%. The closing price’s 50-day simple moving average is $81.78, and its 200-day simple moving average is $76.81. We can see that volatility stands at 2.42% over the past week, decreasing to 1.98% over one month. RSI, which measures relative strength, is at 66.30, suggesting the stock is neutral.
