ING Groep NV Has $10.10 Million Holdings in 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 reduced its stake in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 33.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 168,224 shares of the company's stock after selling 82,839 shares during the quarter. ING Groep NV's holdings in Altria Group were worth $10,097,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Redwood Park Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Altria Group during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Inlight Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Altria Group during the 1st quarter worth about $31,000. Sierra Ocean LLC raised its holdings in Altria Group by 226.3% during the 1st quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC now owns 509 shares of the company's stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 353 shares during the period. Pinney & Scofield Inc. acquired a new stake in Altria Group during the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Bellwether Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Altria Group during the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MO traded up $0.66 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $64.21. The stock had a trading volume of 5,433,128 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,586,698. The company has a market capitalization of $107.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.42, a P/E/G ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.59. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $59.72 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $57.78. Altria Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $48.86 and a 52 week high of $64.35.

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

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 10th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th were issued 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%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on MO. Wall Street Zen downgraded Altria Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Altria Group from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Altria Group from $63.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Citigroup lifted their target price on Altria Group from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on Altria Group from $49.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $59.13.

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.