Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Position Boosted by AQR Capital Management LLC

AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 4.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,862,825 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 250,494 shares during the quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC owned about 0.35% of Altria Group worth $305,453,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Virtu Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the third quarter worth $2,041,000. Wealthquest Corp bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the third quarter worth approximately $209,000. Chelsea Counsel Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 7.8% during the third quarter. Chelsea Counsel Co. now owns 20,300 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,056,000 after acquiring an additional 1,465 shares during the period. Anchor Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 35.9% in the third quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 13,174 shares of the company’s stock valued at $672,000 after buying an additional 3,478 shares during the period. Finally, Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. boosted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 0.9% in the third quarter. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. now owns 82,445 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,208,000 after buying an additional 730 shares during the period. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Altria Group Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of MO opened at $58.18 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $98.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.54. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $57.28 and a 200 day moving average of $54.66. Altria Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $43.37 and a twelve month high of $60.18.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $1.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.04. Altria Group had a net margin of 46.90% and a negative return on equity of 258.72%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 25th will be paid a dividend of $1.02 per share. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.01%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 25th. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 62.29%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target 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. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Altria Group from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Altria Group from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $60.00 price target on Altria Group in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $55.00.

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.