6,018 Shares in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Acquired by Riverbend Wealth Management LLC

Riverbend Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 6,018 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $315,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of MO. Financial Life Planners purchased a new position in Altria Group in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its position in shares of Altria Group by 420.0% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 572 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 462 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Altria Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Promus Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Altria Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the 3rd quarter worth about $34,000. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Altria Group Trading Up 2.1 %

MO stock opened at $58.98 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $99.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.00, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.56. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $53.29 and a 200-day simple moving average of $53.16. Altria Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $40.65 and a twelve month high of $59.67.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The company reported $1.29 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.01. Altria Group had a net margin of 46.90% and a negative return on equity of 258.72%. Research analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 25th will be issued a dividend of $1.02 per share. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.92%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 25th. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 62.29%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on MO shares. Bank of America raised Altria Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the company from $55.00 to $65.00 in a report on Friday, December 6th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Altria Group from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $53.29.

Altria Group Profile

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.