Altria Group (NYSE:MO) Trading 0.7% Higher

Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)’s share price was up 0.7% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $42.94 and last traded at $42.86. Approximately 2,551,136 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 78% from the average daily volume of 11,728,869 shares. The stock had previously closed at $42.57.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on MO shares. Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $50.00 price target on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Monday, March 25th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Altria Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, April 14th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Altria Group from $36.10 to $36.50 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $46.90.

Altria Group Stock Performance

The firm’s 50 day moving average is $42.05 and its two-hundred day moving average is $41.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $73.72 billion, a PE ratio of 9.39, a P/E/G ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.65.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The company reported $1.18 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.17 by $0.01. Altria Group had a net margin of 33.21% and a negative return on equity of 244.55%. The firm had revenue of $5.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.06 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.18 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.11 EPS for the current year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Monday, March 25th will be paid a dividend of $0.98 per share. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 9.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 22nd. Altria Group’s payout ratio is currently 85.78%.

Altria Group announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Thursday, February 1st that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 1.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Altria Group

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC increased its position in shares of Altria Group by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC now owns 5,825 shares of the company’s stock valued at $246,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares during the last quarter. Taylor & Morgan Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Taylor & Morgan Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,981 shares of the company’s stock valued at $483,000 after buying an additional 246 shares in the last quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 7.0% in the 1st quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,767 shares of the company’s stock valued at $168,000 after buying an additional 247 shares in the last quarter. Day & Ennis LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. Day & Ennis LLC now owns 5,353 shares of the company’s stock valued at $225,000 after buying an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Whitener Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Whitener Capital Management Inc. now owns 9,797 shares of the company’s stock valued at $412,000 after buying an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.