Bard Financial Services Inc. Reduces Stock Position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Bard Financial Services Inc. lowered its holdings in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 4.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 140,222 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,125 shares during the quarter. Altria Group comprises 0.9% of Bard Financial Services Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest holding. Bard Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $7,332,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its stake in Altria Group by 4.4% in the second quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 177,080 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,066,000 after acquiring an additional 7,529 shares in the last quarter. Savant Capital LLC grew its stake in Altria Group by 4.6% during the 2nd quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 97,678 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,449,000 after buying an additional 4,273 shares during the last quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC increased its position in Altria Group by 8.9% during the second quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 10,564 shares of the company’s stock worth $492,000 after buying an additional 864 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Altria Group by 2,459.6% in the second quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 237,330 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,810,000 after buying an additional 228,058 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Chicago Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 2.0% in the second quarter. Chicago Capital LLC now owns 14,072 shares of the company’s stock valued at $641,000 after acquiring an additional 280 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Altria Group stock traded down $0.75 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $52.39. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,608,307 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,511,742. The firm has a market capitalization of $88.79 billion, a PE ratio of 8.85, a P/E/G ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.63. Altria Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $39.25 and a fifty-two week high of $58.03. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $54.60 and its 200 day simple moving average is $51.65.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.38 earnings per share (EPS) 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 analysts’ expectations of $5.33 billion. Altria Group had a net margin of 42.82% and a negative return on equity of 233.80%. 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. Equities analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 26th will be paid a dividend of $1.02 per share. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.79%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 26th. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 68.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on MO shares. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Altria Group from $44.50 to $48.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Altria Group from $54.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. StockNews.com upgraded Altria Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on Altria Group from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Altria Group presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $53.33.

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.