Kwmg LLC Increases Stock Position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Kwmg LLC raised its position in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 7.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 106,208 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 7,331 shares during the quarter. Kwmg LLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $4,811,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Thomasville National Bank lifted its position in Altria Group by 1.6% during the second quarter. Thomasville National Bank now owns 16,894 shares of the company’s stock valued at $765,000 after buying an additional 273 shares during the period. Verity & Verity LLC increased its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 11.8% during the second quarter. Verity & Verity LLC now owns 225,163 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,200,000 after acquiring an additional 23,756 shares in the last quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 60.2% during the second quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 316,259 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,327,000 after acquiring an additional 118,809 shares in the last quarter. CVA Family Office LLC increased its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 3.6% during the second quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 8,444 shares of the company’s stock valued at $382,000 after acquiring an additional 290 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Appleton Partners Inc. MA bought a new position in shares of Altria Group during the second quarter valued at $251,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 58.94% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on MO. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on Altria Group from $56.00 to $55.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 22nd. StockNews.com began coverage on Altria Group in a report on Thursday, August 17th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $47.50.

Altria Group Price Performance

NYSE MO traded down $0.57 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $43.53. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 28,877,541 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,186,573. Altria Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $40.35 and a 12 month high of $51.57. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $44.42 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $45.08. The company has a market cap of $77.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.59.

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

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.98 per share. This is an increase from Altria Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 9.01%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 14th. Altria Group’s payout ratio is currently 102.89%.

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.