Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Shares Bought by Taylor Financial Group Inc.

Taylor Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 3.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 7,424 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 250 shares during the period. Taylor Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $388,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Claro Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Altria Group by 28.0% during the third quarter. Claro Advisors LLC now owns 9,055 shares of the company’s stock worth $462,000 after purchasing an additional 1,979 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its position in shares of Altria Group by 4.6% during the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 451,816 shares of the company’s stock worth $23,060,000 after purchasing an additional 19,673 shares in the last quarter. Aljian Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the third quarter worth about $397,000. Richard C. Young & CO. LTD. acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the third quarter worth about $13,476,000. Finally, ETF Store Inc. increased its position in shares of Altria Group by 4.5% during the third quarter. ETF Store Inc. now owns 7,642 shares of the company’s stock worth $390,000 after purchasing an additional 331 shares in the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Altria Group from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Bank of America raised Altria Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $55.00 to $65.00 in a report on Friday, December 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $53.29.

Altria Group Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of MO opened at $58.87 on Tuesday. Altria Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $40.65 and a twelve month high of $59.67. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $53.89 and its two-hundred day moving average is $53.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $99.53 billion, a PE ratio of 8.99, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.56.

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

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 25th will be issued a $1.02 dividend. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.93%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 25th. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio 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.