Banque Transatlantique SA Makes New Investment in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Banque Transatlantique SA purchased a new position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 7,397 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $385,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of MO. World Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in Altria Group by 42.4% during the third quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 18,777 shares of the company's stock valued at $958,000 after purchasing an additional 5,593 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in Altria Group by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,159,890 shares of the company's stock valued at $107,679,000 after buying an additional 46,697 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 13.7% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 2,941 shares of the company's stock valued at $154,000 after buying an additional 354 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 6.7% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 30,588 shares of the company's stock worth $1,599,000 after buying an additional 1,932 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CWA Asset Management Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 5.3% in the fourth quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 240,454 shares of the company's stock worth $12,573,000 after acquiring an additional 12,011 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 57.41% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. StockNews.com cut Altria Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Altria Group from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Altria Group from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Friday. Morgan Stanley cut 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 report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $60.00 target price on Altria Group in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $56.00.

Altria Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MO traded up $0.64 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $60.51. The company's stock had a trading volume of 6,521,641 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,767,016. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $57.71 and a two-hundred day moving average of $54.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $101.93 billion, a PE ratio of 9.24, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.60. Altria Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $43.58 and a 52 week high of $60.61.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $1.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.04. Altria Group had a net margin of 46.90% and a negative return on equity of 258.72%. The business had revenue of $4.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.64 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.15 EPS. The company's revenue was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 25th were given a dividend of $1.02 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 25th. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.74%. Altria Group's payout ratio is 68.34%.

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.