By otakuyassine3@gmail.com 
Fortitude Advisory Group L.L.C. lessened its holdings in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO – Free Report) by 13.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,532 shares of the company’s stock after selling 728 shares during the period. Fortitude Advisory Group L.L.C.’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $237,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 420.0% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 572 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 462 shares during the period. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Altria Group during the 3rd quarter worth $34,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the third quarter valued at about $41,000. Fairman Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Altria Group by 85.1% in the third quarter. Fairman Group LLC now owns 892 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 410 shares during the period. Finally, IFS Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Altria Group by 330.4% in the fourth quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 977 shares of the company’s stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 750 shares during the period. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Altria Group Price Performance
Shares of MO opened at $53.36 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $90.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.01, a PEG ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 0.64. Altria Group, Inc. has a one year low of $39.25 and a one year high of $58.03. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $53.94 and its 200-day simple moving average is $52.21.
Altria Group (NYSE:MO – Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $6.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.33 billion. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 233.80% and a net margin of 42.82%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 18.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.28 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Altria Group Announces Dividend
The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 26th were given a dividend of $1.02 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 26th. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.65%. Altria Group’s payout ratio is 68.92%.
Analyst Ratings Changes
A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. Bank of America raised Altria Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $55.00 to $65.00 in a report on Friday, December 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $54.00 target price for the company. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Altria Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Altria Group presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $53.43.
Altria Group Profile
Altria Group, Inc, through its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells smokeable and oral tobacco products in the United States. The company offers cigarettes primarily under the Marlboro brand; large cigars and pipe tobacco under the Black & Mild brand; moist smokeless tobacco and snus products under the Copenhagen, Skoal, Red Seal, and Husky brands; oral nicotine pouches under the on! brand; and e-vapor products under the NJOY ACE brand.
Read More
Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MO? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO – Free Report).
Receive News & Ratings for Altria Group Daily – Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts’ ratings for Altria Group and related companies with MarketBeat.com’s FREE daily email newsletter.