Capital International Inc. CA Boosts Stock Holdings in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Capital International Inc. CA raised its holdings in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 22.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 220,812 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 40,298 shares during the quarter. Capital International Inc. CA’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $9,632,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Albion Financial Group UT grew its holdings 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 worth $121,000 after acquiring an additional 911 shares during the period. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Altria Group by 15.6% in the fourth quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 40,074 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,617,000 after buying an additional 5,418 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its stake in shares of Altria Group by 1.6% during the 1st quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,027,886 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,960,000 after buying an additional 16,541 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Altria Group by 24.2% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 57,111 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,304,000 after buying an additional 11,111 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Atomi Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in Altria Group by 7.2% during the 1st quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. now owns 5,953 shares of the company’s stock valued at $260,000 after acquiring an additional 399 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Altria Group

In other Altria Group news, VP Charles N. Whitaker sold 22,487 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.95, for a total transaction of $988,303.65. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 173,485 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,624,665.75. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.09% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Altria Group Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE:MO traded up $0.63 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $50.43. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 6,967,303 shares, compared to its average volume of 10,724,491. The firm has a market cap of $86.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.66. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $46.64 and a 200 day moving average price of $43.67. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $39.06 and a 1 year high of $50.47.

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

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 14th were paid a dividend of $0.98 per share. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.77%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 14th. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 82.01%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Altria Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 28th. Argus raised Altria Group to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 31st. UBS Group upped their price objective on Altria Group from $36.10 to $36.50 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Altria Group from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus 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.