KBC Group NV Purchases 4,211 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

KBC Group NV raised its position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 3.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 140,591 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,211 shares during the quarter. KBC Group NV’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $7,352,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. True Wealth Design LLC grew its holdings in Altria Group by 420.0% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 572 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 462 shares during the period. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in Altria Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Altria Group during the third quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Fairman Group LLC boosted its position 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 in the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Altria Group Price Performance

NYSE:MO opened at $51.59 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $87.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.72, a PEG ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 0.64. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $39.25 and a 1 year high of $58.03. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $53.75 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $52.29.

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 42.82% and a negative return on equity of 233.80%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.13 EPS for the current year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 26th were issued a $1.02 dividend. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.91%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 26th. Altria Group’s payout ratio is 68.92%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MO has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of 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. Bank of America raised Altria Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $55.00 to $65.00 in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Citigroup upped their price target on Altria Group from $44.50 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $53.43.

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.