Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Stock Holdings Decreased by Rathbones Group PLC

Rathbones Group PLC lessened its position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 4.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 303,922 shares of the company’s stock after selling 14,422 shares during the quarter. Rathbones Group PLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $15,892,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Altria Group in the 3rd quarter worth about $963,000. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 52.1% in the 3rd quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 100,970 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,154,000 after purchasing an additional 34,573 shares during the period. EP Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Altria Group by 113.2% in the third quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 81,119 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,140,000 after purchasing an additional 43,074 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 59.4% during the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 936,863 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,817,000 after purchasing an additional 349,165 shares during the period. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the third quarter worth approximately $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MO has been the subject of a number of research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $60.00 target price on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Altria Group from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Altria Group from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $54.00.

Altria Group Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of Altria Group stock opened at $55.72 on Tuesday. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $40.65 and a 1-year high of $60.18. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $55.77 and a 200-day simple moving average of $53.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $94.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.51, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.54.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The company reported $1.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.01. Altria Group had a net margin of 46.90% and a negative return on equity of 258.72%. As a group, research analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 25th will be issued a dividend of $1.02 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 25th. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.32%. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.29%.

About Altria Group

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.