Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Shares Acquired by Nemes Rush Group LLC

Nemes Rush Group LLC lifted its position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 579.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,412 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,763 shares during the quarter. Nemes Rush Group LLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $231,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new position in Altria Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. True Wealth Design LLC raised its stake in Altria Group by 420.0% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 572 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 462 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in Altria Group during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Marshall Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Altria Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on MO shares. UBS Group upped their price target on Altria Group from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of 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. Bank of America upgraded shares of 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 note on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered shares of Altria Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $54.00.

Altria Group Trading Down 1.8 %

Shares of MO opened at $58.96 on Wednesday. Altria Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $40.65 and a twelve month high of $60.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $99.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.00, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.56. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $55.38 and its two-hundred day moving average is $53.69.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The company reported $1.29 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. Analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 25th will be paid a dividend of $1.02 per share. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 25th. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.29%.

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.