Altria Group (NYSE:MO) Stock Price Down 0.9% – What’s Next?

by · The Markets Daily

Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO – Get Free Report) shares fell 0.9% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $50.85 and last traded at $50.91. 1,746,607 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 71% from the average session volume of 6,097,403 shares. The stock had previously closed at $51.36.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on MO shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Altria Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target 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. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Altria Group from $54.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Bank of America raised Altria Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $55.00 to $65.00 in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on Altria Group from $44.50 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Altria Group presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $53.33.

View Our Latest Stock Report on MO

Altria Group Trading Down 0.6 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $86.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.64. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $54.44 and a 200-day moving average price of $51.92.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.38 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 analyst estimates of $5.33 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.28 earnings per share. Altria Group’s quarterly revenue was up 18.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 26th were issued 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 7.99%. Altria Group’s payout ratio is 68.92%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Altria Group

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Howard Financial Services LTD. lifted its position in shares of Altria Group by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. Howard Financial Services LTD. now owns 6,588 shares of the company’s stock worth $344,000 after purchasing an additional 356 shares during the last quarter. Verity & Verity LLC increased its stake in Altria Group by 9.5% in the 4th quarter. Verity & Verity LLC now owns 300,722 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,725,000 after buying an additional 26,154 shares during the period. FARMERS & MERCHANTS TRUST Co OF LONG BEACH lifted its holdings in Altria Group by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. FARMERS & MERCHANTS TRUST Co OF LONG BEACH now owns 10,560 shares of the company’s stock valued at $552,000 after buying an additional 438 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group boosted its position in Altria Group by 61.7% in the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 7,923 shares of the company’s stock valued at $414,000 after buying an additional 3,024 shares during the period. Finally, Whitener Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in Altria Group by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Whitener Capital Management Inc. now owns 35,023 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,831,000 after acquiring an additional 603 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Altria Group Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

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.

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