South Dakota Investment Council Reduces Position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

South Dakota Investment Council decreased its holdings in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 3.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 228,008 shares of the company’s stock after selling 8,200 shares during the period. South Dakota Investment Council’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $9,198,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC now owns 5,825 shares of the company’s stock worth $246,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares during the period. Taylor & Morgan Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Altria Group by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Taylor & Morgan Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,981 shares of the company’s stock worth $483,000 after acquiring an additional 246 shares in the last quarter. Day & Ennis LLC raised its position in shares of Altria Group by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter. Day & Ennis LLC now owns 5,353 shares of the company’s stock valued at $225,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the period. Whitener Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Whitener Capital Management Inc. now owns 9,797 shares of the company’s stock valued at $412,000 after buying an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Salvus Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Altria Group by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Salvus Wealth Management LLC now owns 14,326 shares of the company’s stock worth $578,000 after buying an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on MO shares. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Altria Group from $36.10 to $36.50 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, April 8th. StockNews.com downgraded Altria Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, April 14th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $50.00 price objective on shares of Altria Group in a research report on Monday, March 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Altria Group currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $46.90.

Altria Group Stock Up 0.1 %

Altria Group stock traded up $0.05 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $42.92. 6,472,653 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 11,872,679. The stock has a market cap of $73.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.39, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.65. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $42.00 and its 200-day moving average is $41.44. Altria Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $39.06 and a 12 month high of $48.04.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The company reported $1.18 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.17 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $5.02 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.06 billion. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 244.55% and a net margin of 33.21%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.18 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group declared that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Thursday, February 1st that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to buy up to 1.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Monday, March 25th will be issued a $0.98 dividend. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 9.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 22nd. Altria Group’s payout ratio is 85.78%.

Altria Group Company 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.