Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Shares Sold by Philip James Wealth Mangement LLC

Philip James Wealth Mangement LLC reduced its position in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 2.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 221,065 shares of the company's stock after selling 5,152 shares during the period. Altria Group makes up approximately 1.6% of Philip James Wealth Mangement LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest position. Philip James Wealth Mangement LLC's holdings in Altria Group were worth $13,268,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. St. Johns Investment Management Company LLC raised its position in shares of Altria Group by 37.8% in the 1st quarter. St. Johns Investment Management Company LLC now owns 689 shares of the company's stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 189 shares in the last quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Altria Group by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 4,581 shares of the company's stock valued at $240,000 after buying an additional 190 shares during the period. Enterprise Financial Services Corp grew its stake in shares of Altria Group by 4.0% in the 4th quarter. Enterprise Financial Services Corp now owns 5,052 shares of the company's stock valued at $264,000 after buying an additional 194 shares during the period. Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc increased its stake in Altria Group by 3.1% during the 1st quarter. Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc now owns 6,499 shares of the company's stock valued at $390,000 after purchasing an additional 197 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Skyline Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 2.2% in the first quarter. Skyline Advisors Inc. now owns 9,255 shares of the company's stock valued at $555,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.41% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on MO. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Altria Group in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Needham & Company LLC raised Altria Group to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. UBS Group upped their target price on Altria Group from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Altria Group from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $56.00.

Altria Group Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of MO opened at $58.82 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $59.20 and a 200 day moving average of $56.26. The company has a market cap of $99.09 billion, a PE ratio of 9.85, a P/E/G ratio of 3.45 and a beta of 0.60. Altria Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $45.17 and a 52-week high of $61.26.

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

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be paid a dividend of $1.02 per share. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 68.34%.

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.

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