Donoghue Forlines LLC Invests $1.50 Million in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Donoghue Forlines LLC acquired a new stake in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm acquired 28,668 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,499,000.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on MO. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Altria Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Bank of America upgraded Altria Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $55.00 to $65.00 in a report on Friday, December 6th. Citigroup increased their price target on Altria Group from $44.50 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Altria Group from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley started coverage on Altria Group in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $54.00 target price for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $53.43.

Altria Group Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of MO stock opened at $51.07 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $54.10 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $52.10. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $39.25 and a 1 year high of $58.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $86.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.62, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.64.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last released 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. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 233.80% and a net margin of 42.82%. The business had revenue of $6.26 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.33 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.28 earnings per share. Altria Group’s quarterly revenue was up 18.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 26th were issued a $1.02 dividend. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 26th. Altria Group’s payout ratio is presently 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.