Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Shares Purchased by MONECO Advisors LLC

MONECO Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 445.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 63,094 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 51,536 shares during the quarter. MONECO Advisors LLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $2,545,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Altria Group during the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. Nemes Rush Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 103.2% during the 3rd quarter. Nemes Rush Group LLC now owns 636 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 323 shares during the period. ZRC Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 67.6% during the 4th quarter. ZRC Wealth Management LLC now owns 677 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 273 shares during the period. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Altria Group during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Finally, Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 1,800.0% during the 3rd quarter. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. now owns 703 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 666 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Shares of MO traded down $0.01 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $43.81. The stock had a trading volume of 11,552,031 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,975,853. The firm has a market cap of $75.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.20, a P/E/G ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.65. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $42.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $41.46. Altria Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $39.06 and a 12-month high of $48.04.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $1.15 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.15. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 222.80% and a net margin of 34.81%. The business had revenue of $4.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.71 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.18 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, February 1st that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 1.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 25th will be given a $0.98 dividend. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 8.95%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 22nd. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 82.01%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MO has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group increased their price target on Altria Group from $36.10 to $36.50 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “buy” rating and set a $50.00 price target on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Monday, March 25th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Altria Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, April 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $46.90.

Altria Group 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.