Cidel Asset Management Inc. Sells 610 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Cidel Asset Management Inc. trimmed its position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 3.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 19,750 shares of the company’s stock after selling 610 shares during the period. Cidel Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $1,033,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of MO. Joel Isaacson & Co. LLC boosted its position in shares of Altria Group by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Joel Isaacson & Co. LLC now owns 16,365 shares of the company’s stock worth $856,000 after purchasing an additional 351 shares in the last quarter. Realta Investment Advisors lifted its holdings in Altria Group by 15.7% during the fourth quarter. Realta Investment Advisors now owns 9,009 shares of the company’s stock worth $479,000 after acquiring an additional 1,222 shares in the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Altria Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $291,000. Fairvoy Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the fourth quarter worth about $376,000. Finally, William Allan Corp raised its position in shares of Altria Group by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. William Allan Corp now owns 4,940 shares of the company’s stock worth $258,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Altria Group Stock Up 0.0 %

NYSE:MO opened at $52.65 on Friday. Altria Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $39.25 and a twelve month high of $58.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $89.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.64. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $53.19 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $52.42.

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

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 26th were given a $1.02 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 26th. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.75%. Altria Group’s payout ratio is 62.29%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on MO. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Altria Group from $54.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on shares of Altria Group from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. StockNews.com upgraded 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 increased their price objective for the stock from $55.00 to $65.00 in a report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, 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 note on Friday, January 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Altria Group currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $53.29.

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.