DoubleLine ETF Adviser LP Invests $4.18 Million in Altria Group, Inc. $MO

DoubleLine ETF Adviser LP bought a new position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund bought 63,290 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,181,000. Altria Group comprises about 1.3% of DoubleLine ETF Adviser LP’s holdings, making the stock its 19th largest position.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of MO. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. Country Trust Bank lifted its stake in Altria Group by 400.0% during the second quarter. Country Trust Bank now owns 500 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Anfield Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Altria Group by 334.7% during the second quarter. Anfield Capital Management LLC now owns 539 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 415 shares in the last quarter. Winnow Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group in the second quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, WFA of San Diego LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the second quarter valued at approximately $39,000. 57.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Altria Group

In other news, SVP Charles N. Whitaker sold 27,908 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.57, for a total transaction of $1,885,743.56. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 180,869 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,221,318.33. This trade represents a 13.37% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.08% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently commented on MO. Argus raised shares of Altria Group to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on Altria Group from $72.00 to $68.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 30th. UBS Group lifted their price target on Altria Group from $67.00 to $74.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 9th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Altria Group from $47.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on Altria Group from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $65.11.

Altria Group Price Performance

Shares of MO stock opened at $67.96 on Friday. Altria Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $52.82 and a fifty-two week high of $70.51. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $64.21 and its two-hundred day moving average is $62.61. The firm has a market cap of $113.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.53, a PEG ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.45.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.32 by ($0.02). Altria Group had a net margin of 29.84% and a negative return on equity of 287.61%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.30 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 25th will be given a $1.06 dividend. This represents a $4.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 25th. Altria Group’s payout ratio is currently 103.16%.

Altria Group Profile

Altria Group, Inc (NYSE: MO) is a U.S.-based consumer goods company whose principal business is the manufacture and sale of tobacco products. Headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, the company’s operations are focused primarily on the U.S. market and include the production, marketing and distribution of cigarettes, smokeless tobacco and cigars. Its flagship cigarette franchise in the United States is sold through its operating subsidiaries and is among the most recognizable cigarette brands in the country.

Altria’s principal operating businesses include Philip Morris USA (cigarettes), U.S.