Cwm LLC Raises Stake in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

CWM LLC lifted its position in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 2.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 336,042 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 9,370 shares during the quarter. CWM LLC's holdings in Altria Group were worth $20,169,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vista Investment Partners II LLC increased its position in 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 in the last quarter. St. Johns Investment Management Company LLC grew its stake in shares of Altria Group by 37.8% in the first quarter. St. Johns Investment Management Company LLC now owns 689 shares of the company's stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 189 shares during the last quarter. Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc increased its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 3.1% during the first quarter. Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc now owns 6,499 shares of the company's stock valued at $390,000 after acquiring an additional 197 shares in the last quarter. Skyline Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Altria Group by 2.2% in the 1st quarter. Skyline Advisors Inc. now owns 9,255 shares of the company's stock worth $555,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fiduciary Group LLC boosted its stake in Altria Group by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Fiduciary Group LLC now owns 13,778 shares of the company's stock worth $720,000 after purchasing an additional 203 shares in the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Altria Group Price Performance

Shares of MO traded up $0.32 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $58.12. The stock had a trading volume of 8,318,770 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,292,063. Altria Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $47.53 and a 12 month high of $61.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $97.89 billion, a PE ratio of 9.73, a PEG ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 0.59. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $59.25 and a 200 day moving average price of $56.66.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $1.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.04. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 295.44% and a net margin of 43.09%. The business had revenue of $4.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.64 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.15 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th were given a dividend of $1.02 per share. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 16th. Altria Group's payout ratio is 68.34%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MO has been the topic of several analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. They issued an "underperform" rating and a $50.00 target price on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Altria Group from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Barclays lifted their target price on Altria Group from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $60.00 price target on Altria Group in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Needham & Company LLC upgraded Altria Group to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $56.75.

Altria Group 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.