Allianz SE Makes New Investment in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Allianz SE acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 13,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $715,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of MO. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in Altria Group in the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its holdings in Altria Group by 420.0% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 572 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 462 shares during the period. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in Altria Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Promus Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Altria Group in the fourth quarter worth $33,000. 57.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Bank of America upgraded Altria Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $55.00 to $65.00 in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Altria Group currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $53.29.

Altria Group Stock Down 0.2 %

MO stock opened at $58.17 on Monday. Altria Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $40.65 and a twelve month high of $59.67. The stock has a market cap of $98.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.88, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.56. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $55.07 and its 200-day moving average price is $53.60.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The company reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.01. Altria Group had a net margin of 46.90% and a negative return on equity of 258.72%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

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

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.