Citigroup Boosts Altria Group (NYSE:MO) Price Target to $55.00

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Free Report) had its target price lifted by Citigroup from $52.00 to $55.00 in a research note released on Friday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the stock.

MO has been the topic of several other research reports. UBS Group upped their target price on Altria Group from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Morgan Stanley dropped 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, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $60.00 price target on shares of Altria Group in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $55.00.

Altria Group Price Performance

Shares of MO stock traded up $0.57 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $58.76. The stock had a trading volume of 7,646,711 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,768,907. Altria Group has a fifty-two week low of $43.37 and a fifty-two week high of $60.18. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $57.28 and its 200-day simple moving average is $54.66. The firm has a market cap of $99.33 billion, a PE ratio of 8.97, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.54.

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

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 25th will be paid a $1.02 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 25th. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.94%. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.29%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Altria Group

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vista Investment Partners II LLC boosted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 4.2% during the 1st quarter. Vista Investment Partners II LLC now owns 4,302 shares of the company's stock valued at $258,000 after buying an additional 174 shares during the last quarter. St. Johns Investment Management Company LLC raised its holdings in Altria Group by 37.8% in the first quarter. St. Johns Investment Management Company LLC now owns 689 shares of the company's stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 189 shares in the last quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC boosted its stake in Altria Group by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 4,581 shares of the company's stock valued at $240,000 after acquiring an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. Enterprise Financial Services Corp grew its holdings in Altria Group by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Enterprise Financial Services Corp now owns 5,052 shares of the company's stock worth $264,000 after acquiring an additional 194 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc increased its position in shares of Altria Group by 3.1% in the 1st quarter. Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc now owns 6,499 shares of the company's stock worth $390,000 after purchasing an additional 197 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.41% of the company's stock.

Altria Group Company Profile

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.