ING Groep NV Sells 82,839 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Key Points

• ING Groep NV has reduced its stake in Altria Group by 33.0%, selling 82,839 shares and now holding 168,224 shares valued at approximately $10.1 million.
• In the 1st quarter, GAMMA Investing LLC significantly increased its investment in Altria by over 6,900%, acquiring more than 2.1 million shares.
• Altria Group's last quarterly earnings showed a profit of $1.44 per share, exceeding analysts' estimates, with a revenue of $5.29 billion for the quarter, up 0.2% year-over-year.

ING Groep NV decreased its position in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 33.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 168,224 shares of the company's stock after selling 82,839 shares during the period. ING Groep NV's holdings in Altria Group were worth $10,097,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Redwood Park Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Altria Group in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Sierra Ocean LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 226.3% during the first quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC now owns 509 shares of the company's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 353 shares during the period. Inlight Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Altria Group during the 1st quarter worth approximately $31,000. Pinney & Scofield Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, TruNorth Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Altria Group by 51.8% during the first quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 636 shares of the company's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 217 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.41% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Needham & Company LLC raised shares of Altria Group to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Altria Group in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. They set an "underperform" rating and a $50.00 price objective on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Wall Street Zen downgraded Altria Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on Altria Group from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $59.13.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MO traded up $0.40 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $63.55. The stock had a trading volume of 4,907,117 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,047,638. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $59.64 and its 200 day simple moving average is $57.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $106.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.29, a PEG ratio of 3.40 and a beta of 0.59. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $48.86 and a 1-year high of $63.76.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.44 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.07. Altria Group had a net margin of 37.24% and a negative return on equity of 295.26%. The firm had revenue of $5.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.21 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.31 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 10th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th were given a $1.02 dividend. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.4%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 16th. Altria Group's payout ratio is 78.92%.

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.