Cypress Capital Group Has $4.21 Million Stake in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Key Points

• Cypress Capital Group increased its holdings in Altria Group, Inc. by 7.5%, owning 70,126 shares valued at approximately $4.2 million by the end of the first quarter.
• Several institutions raised their positions in Altria Group, with a notable increase from Vista Investment Partners II LLC at 4.2%, reflecting growing interest from hedge funds.
• Altria Group reported a net income of $1.44 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding analyst expectations, while declaring a quarterly dividend of $1.02 with a yield of 6.4%.

Cypress Capital Group grew its holdings in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 7.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 70,126 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 4,910 shares during the quarter. Cypress Capital Group's holdings in Altria Group were worth $4,209,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Inlight Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group in the first quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Sierra Ocean LLC increased its stake in shares of Altria Group by 226.3% in the first quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC now owns 509 shares of the company's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 353 shares during the period. Pinney & Scofield Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Bellwether Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, TruNorth Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Altria Group by 51.8% in the first quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 636 shares of the company's stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 217 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.41% of the company's stock.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Shares of Altria Group stock traded up $0.08 on Thursday, reaching $65.58. 10,747,348 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,162,725. The company has a market capitalization of $110.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 0.59. Altria Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $48.86 and a 52 week high of $66.29. The firm's 50-day moving average is $60.06 and its two-hundred day moving average is $58.08.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.37 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $5.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.21 billion. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 295.26% and a net margin of 37.24%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.31 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced 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 6.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 16th. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 78.92%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently issued reports on MO. UBS Group raised Altria Group from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $47.00 to $59.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Altria Group from $63.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Barclays upped their target price on Altria Group from $49.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Wall Street Zen cut Altria Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Altria Group from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $59.13.

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.