Advisory Services Network LLC Trims Holdings in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Advisory Services Network LLC decreased its stake in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 17.0% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 159,934 shares of the company’s stock after selling 32,822 shares during the period. Advisory Services Network LLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $6,976,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in MO. FSC Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Altria Group by 21.3% in the fourth quarter. FSC Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,719 shares of the company’s stock valued at $110,000 after acquiring an additional 477 shares during the last quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000. Albion Financial Group UT lifted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 49.1% in the 1st quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 2,767 shares of the company’s stock valued at $121,000 after purchasing an additional 911 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its position in shares of Altria Group by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,011,345 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,727,000 after buying an additional 4,789 shares during the period. Finally, Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 15.6% during the fourth quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 40,074 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,617,000 after purchasing an additional 5,418 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Charles N. Whitaker sold 22,487 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.95, for a total transaction of $988,303.65. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 173,485 shares in the company, valued at $7,624,665.75. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Altria Group Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE:MO traded up $0.41 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $47.49. The stock had a trading volume of 1,864,330 shares, compared to its average volume of 10,920,725. The company has a market cap of $81.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.66. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $45.71 and its 200 day moving average price is $43.04. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $39.06 and a 1 year high of $47.57.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $1.15 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15. The firm had revenue of $4.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.71 billion. Altria Group had a net margin of 34.81% and a negative return on equity of 222.80%. Altria Group’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.18 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 10th. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th were issued a dividend of $0.98 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 14th. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 8.25%. Altria Group’s payout ratio is 82.01%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MO has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Altria Group from $36.10 to $36.50 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. Bank of America upped their price target on Altria Group from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Altria Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, June 28th. Argus upgraded shares of Altria Group to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 31st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “buy” rating and set a $50.00 price target on shares of Altria Group in a report on Monday, March 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Altria Group presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $47.10.

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.