Capital International Sarl Raises Position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Capital International Sarl boosted its position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 33.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 41,119 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 10,392 shares during the period. Capital International Sarl’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $2,150,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Arvest Bank Trust Division bought a new stake in Altria Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $212,000. Capital Square LLC increased its stake in shares of Altria Group by 6.6% in the fourth quarter. Capital Square LLC now owns 62,954 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,277,000 after purchasing an additional 3,908 shares in the last quarter. Cravens & Co Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Altria Group by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Cravens & Co Advisors LLC now owns 7,487 shares of the company’s stock valued at $391,000 after purchasing an additional 214 shares during the period. MSH Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $502,000. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 12.2% during the 4th quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 267,165 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,970,000 after buying an additional 28,991 shares in the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Altria Group Price Performance

MO stock opened at $58.13 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $56.68 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $54.25. The stock has a market cap of $98.27 billion, a PE ratio of 8.87, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.54. Altria Group, Inc. has a one year low of $41.39 and a one year high of $60.18.

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

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 25th will be paid a dividend of $1.02 per share. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.02%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 25th. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.29%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $60.00 target price on Altria Group in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. UBS Group raised their target price on Altria Group from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on 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 research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $54.00.

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.