Axxcess Wealth Management LLC Lowers Stake in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Axxcess Wealth Management LLC trimmed its stake in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 20.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 42,145 shares of the company’s stock after selling 10,556 shares during the quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $2,204,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MO. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its stake in Altria Group by 4.6% during the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 451,816 shares of the company’s stock valued at $23,060,000 after purchasing an additional 19,673 shares during the last quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Altria Group during the third quarter valued at about $204,000. Prospera Financial Services Inc lifted its stake in Altria Group by 9.8% during the third quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 79,149 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,040,000 after buying an additional 7,088 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 79.9% in the 3rd quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 14,004 shares of the company’s stock valued at $715,000 after purchasing an additional 6,219 shares during the period. Finally, B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,394,000. 57.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on MO shares. Bank of America upgraded Altria Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $55.00 to $65.00 in a report on Friday, December 6th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective 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, three have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $53.29.

Altria Group Price Performance

NYSE MO opened at $57.97 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $54.16 and a 200 day simple moving average of $53.42. Altria Group, Inc. has a one year low of $40.65 and a one year high of $59.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $98.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.85, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.56.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last posted its 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%. Equities analysts expect that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The company 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 yield of 7.04%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 25th. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 62.29%.

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.