one8zero8 LLC Takes Position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

one8zero8 LLC bought a new stake in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 32,169 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,682,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in Altria Group by 6.9% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 136,380 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,961,000 after buying an additional 8,823 shares in the last quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 1.8% in the third quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 45,091 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,301,000 after purchasing an additional 788 shares during the period. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 7.7% in the third quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 55,385 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,827,000 after purchasing an additional 3,975 shares during the period. Balboa Wealth Partners purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $238,000. Finally, Intellectus Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 4.7% in the third quarter. Intellectus Partners LLC now owns 12,840 shares of the company’s stock valued at $668,000 after purchasing an additional 577 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Altria Group Stock Up 0.7 %

Altria Group stock opened at $58.97 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $53.75 and a two-hundred day moving average of $53.31. The firm has a market cap of $99.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.00, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.56. Altria Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $40.65 and a twelve month high of $59.67.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The company reported $1.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 25th will be given a $1.02 dividend. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 25th. Altria Group’s payout ratio is 62.29%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target 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. Bank of America upgraded Altria Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $55.00 to $65.00 in a report on Friday, December 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $53.29.

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.