Altria Group (NYSE:MO) Trading Up 1.5% – Still a Buy?

Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)’s share price rose 1.5% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $57.52 and last traded at $57.58. Approximately 1,590,909 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 81% from the average daily volume of 8,474,887 shares. The stock had previously closed at $56.71.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on MO. Bank of America raised shares of Altria Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $55.00 to $65.00 in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Altria Group from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report 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’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Altria Group currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $53.29.

Altria Group Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $98.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.88, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.56. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $54.94 and a 200 day moving average price of $53.57.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The company reported $1.29 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. As a group, equities research analysts predict 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 will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 25th will be paid a $1.02 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 25th. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.01%. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 62.29%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Altria Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Financial Life Planners purchased a new position in Altria Group in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Redwood Park Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. True Wealth Design LLC raised its holdings in Altria Group by 420.0% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 572 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 462 shares in the last quarter. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in Altria Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Marshall Investment Management LLC acquired a new position 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.

About Altria Group

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.