Ignite Planners LLC Acquires 2,169 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Ignite Planners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 9.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 24,866 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 2,169 shares during the quarter. Ignite Planners LLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $1,321,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Aviance Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Aviance Capital Partners LLC now owns 40,362 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,060,000 after purchasing an additional 191 shares in the last quarter. Delta Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 2.9% during the second quarter. Delta Investment Management LLC now owns 7,064 shares of the company’s stock worth $322,000 after buying an additional 198 shares in the last quarter. Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc now owns 6,302 shares of the company’s stock valued at $330,000 after acquiring an additional 199 shares in the last quarter. American Institute for Advanced Investment Management LLP increased its holdings in Altria Group by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. American Institute for Advanced Investment Management LLP now owns 5,860 shares of the company’s stock worth $299,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ridgecrest Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 3.5% during the third quarter. Ridgecrest Wealth Partners LLC now owns 5,851 shares of the company’s stock worth $299,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on MO. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on shares of Altria Group from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Barclays raised their target price on Altria Group from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Altria Group from $54.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Citigroup raised their price objective on Altria Group from $44.50 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Altria Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Altria Group currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $53.33.

Altria Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MO opened at $50.84 on Tuesday. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $39.25 and a 1 year high of $58.03. The business’s 50-day moving average is $54.50 and its 200-day moving average is $51.88. The company has a market capitalization of $86.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.59, a P/E/G ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.64.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $6.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.33 billion. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 233.80% and a net margin of 42.82%. The company’s revenue was up 18.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.28 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.12 EPS for the current year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 26th were paid a $1.02 dividend. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 8.03%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 26th. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 68.92%.

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.