Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Shares Bought by Everpar Advisors LLC

Everpar Advisors LLC raised its stake in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 6.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,054 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 309 shares during the period. Everpar Advisors LLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $303,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings in Altria Group by 64.7% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 17,702 shares of the company’s stock valued at $926,000 after acquiring an additional 6,954 shares in the last quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC increased its stake in shares of Altria Group by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC now owns 11,653 shares of the company’s stock worth $609,000 after purchasing an additional 232 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its stake in shares of Altria Group by 14.7% during the 4th quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 524,653 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,550,000 after purchasing an additional 67,117 shares in the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC raised its position in shares of Altria Group by 5.4% during the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 17,339 shares of the company’s stock worth $907,000 after purchasing an additional 888 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sage Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Altria Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $2,573,000. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Altria Group Price Performance

NYSE MO opened at $59.74 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $100.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.12, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.60. Altria Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $43.92 and a 12 month high of $61.26. The company has a 50-day moving average of $58.75 and a 200-day moving average of $56.10.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $1.23 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $4.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.64 billion. Altria Group had a net margin of 46.90% and a negative return on equity of 258.72%. Altria Group’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.15 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be paid a dividend of $1.02 per share. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.83%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 68.34%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded Altria Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Altria Group from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Altria Group from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Altria Group from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Altria Group in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $56.00.

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.