Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Shares Sold by Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC

Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC cut its position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 5.6% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 4,334 shares of the company’s stock after selling 258 shares during the period. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $260,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MO. Redwood Park Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in Altria Group during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Altria Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Promus Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Pinney & Scofield Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Shares of MO opened at $58.58 on Wednesday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $58.50 and its 200-day simple moving average is $56.05. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $43.83 and a 1 year high of $61.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $98.68 billion, a PE ratio of 8.94, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.60.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $1.23 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.04. Altria Group had a net margin of 46.90% and a negative return on equity of 258.72%. The company had revenue of $4.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.64 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.15 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be given a dividend of $1.02 per share. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.96%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 68.34%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently commented on MO. UBS Group upped their price objective on Altria Group from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Barclays increased their price target on Altria Group from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $60.00 target price on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Altria Group from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Altria Group currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $56.00.

Altria Group Company 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.