Altria Group (NYSE:MO) Stock Price Down 0% – Here’s Why

Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)’s stock price traded down 0% on Friday . The stock traded as low as $53.91 and last traded at $54.44. 1,948,821 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 80% from the average session volume of 9,864,460 shares. The stock had previously closed at $54.46.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MO has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Barclays boosted their price objective on Altria Group from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 9th. StockNews.com cut Altria Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Altria Group from $57.00 to $53.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Citigroup raised their price target on Altria Group from $44.50 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on shares of Altria Group from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $51.17.

Altria Group Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $91.91 billion, a PE ratio of 9.10, a P/E/G ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 0.64. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $51.42 and a 200-day moving average price of $48.43.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.36 by $0.02. Altria Group had a net margin of 42.82% and a negative return on equity of 233.80%. The business had revenue of $6.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.33 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.28 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 16th were paid a dividend of $1.02 per share. This is a positive change from Altria Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.98. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 16th. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.57%. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 68.92%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Altria Group in the 2nd quarter worth about $27,000. BNP Paribas purchased a new position in shares of Altria Group during the 1st quarter worth $27,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $30,000. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 63.9% during the 2nd quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 667 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 260 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fairman Group LLC raised its position in Altria Group by 85.1% in the third quarter. Fairman Group LLC now owns 892 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 410 shares during the period. 57.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.