Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC Has $4.71 Million Stake in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 2.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 90,126 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 2,431 shares during the period. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $4,713,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Aviance Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings 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 worth $2,060,000 after acquiring an additional 191 shares during the period. Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc raised its position in Altria Group by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc now owns 6,302 shares of the company’s stock worth $330,000 after purchasing an additional 199 shares in the last quarter. American Institute for Advanced Investment Management LLP lifted its stake in Altria Group by 3.5% during the third 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 during the period. Ridgecrest Wealth Partners LLC boosted 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 in the last quarter. Finally, First Citizens Financial Corp grew its stake in shares of Altria Group by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. First Citizens Financial Corp now owns 4,402 shares of the company’s stock valued at $230,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Altria Group Stock Up 1.6 %

Altria Group stock opened at $52.02 on Monday. Altria Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $39.25 and a 12-month high of $58.03. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $53.94 and a 200 day simple moving average of $52.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $88.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.79, a P/E/G ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 0.64.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.03. Altria Group had a net margin of 42.82% and a negative return on equity of 233.80%. The company had revenue of $6.26 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.33 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.28 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 18.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.13 EPS for the current year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 26th were paid a $1.02 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 26th. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.84%. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 68.92%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on MO. Bank of America upgraded Altria Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $55.00 to $65.00 in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Altria Group in a report on Thursday, January 16th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $54.00 price objective for the company. 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 shares of Altria Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Altria Group from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Altria Group has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $53.43.

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.