Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Shares Purchased by NewEdge Advisors LLC

NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 2.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 161,314 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,048 shares during the quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $7,259,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MO. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P acquired a new stake in Altria Group during the first quarter worth about $25,000. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Altria Group during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Ellevest Inc. increased its stake in Altria Group by 346.7% during the first quarter. Ellevest Inc. now owns 670 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 520 shares during the last quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC increased its stake in Altria Group by 153.8% during the first quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 731 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 443 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dark Forest Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Altria Group during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. 58.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Shares of MO opened at $44.11 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $78.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.59. Altria Group, Inc. has a one year low of $40.35 and a one year high of $51.57. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $44.62 and a 200 day moving average price of $45.29.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 1st. The company reported $1.31 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.31. The firm had revenue of $5.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.43 billion. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 225.61% and a net margin of 27.40%. Altria Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.26 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.98 per share. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.89%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 14th. This is an increase from Altria Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 102.89%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on Altria Group from $56.00 to $55.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 22nd. StockNews.com started coverage on Altria Group in a research note on Thursday, August 17th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $47.50.

Altria Group Profile

Altria Group, Inc, through its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells smokeable and oral tobacco products in the United States. The company provides cigarettes primarily under the Marlboro brand; cigars and pipe tobacco principally under the Black & Mild brand; moist smokeless tobacco products and snus products under the Copenhagen, Skoal, Red Seal, and Husky brands; and on! oral nicotine pouches.