Cascades Capital Asset Management LLC Purchases Shares of 4,870 Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Cascades Capital Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 4,870 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $255,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the 3rd quarter worth about $963,000. Quantinno Capital Management LP grew its position in Altria Group by 90.8% in the third quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 112,587 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,746,000 after acquiring an additional 53,567 shares in the last quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Altria Group during the third quarter worth approximately $32,206,000. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC raised its position in Altria Group by 52.1% during the third quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 100,970 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,154,000 after purchasing an additional 34,573 shares during the period. Finally, EP Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 113.2% in the 3rd quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 81,119 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,140,000 after purchasing an additional 43,074 shares during the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on MO shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered Altria Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Altria Group from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Altria Group from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $54.00.

Altria Group Trading Down 3.2 %

Shares of MO opened at $56.05 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $94.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.54. Altria Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $40.65 and a 12-month high of $60.18. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $55.72 and a 200-day moving average price of $53.80.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 46.90% and a negative return on equity of 258.72%. Analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The company 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 25th. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.28%. Altria Group’s payout ratio 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.