Sentry Investment Management LLC Has $285,000 Holdings in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Sentry Investment Management LLC cut its holdings in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 66.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 5,117 shares of the company's stock after selling 10,022 shares during the quarter. Sentry Investment Management LLC's holdings in Altria Group were worth $285,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of MO. Truvestments Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Altria Group by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 4,581 shares of the company's stock worth $240,000 after buying an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. Enterprise Financial Services Corp grew its holdings in Altria Group by 4.0% during the fourth quarter. Enterprise Financial Services Corp now owns 5,052 shares of the company's stock worth $264,000 after acquiring an additional 194 shares during the period. Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc raised its position in Altria Group by 3.1% in the first quarter. Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc now owns 6,499 shares of the company's stock worth $390,000 after acquiring an additional 197 shares in the last quarter. Fiduciary Group LLC raised its position in Altria Group by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Fiduciary Group LLC now owns 13,778 shares of the company's stock worth $720,000 after acquiring an additional 203 shares in the last quarter. Finally, William Allan Corp lifted its holdings in Altria Group by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. William Allan Corp now owns 4,940 shares of the company's stock valued at $258,000 after acquiring an additional 204 shares during the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Altria Group Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:MO traded up $0.05 during trading on Thursday, reaching $59.36. The stock had a trading volume of 9,054,176 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,639,142. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $58.46 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $55.97. Altria Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $43.83 and a 52 week high of $61.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $99.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.06, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.60.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $1.23 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.04. The firm 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 46.90% and a negative return on equity of 258.72%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.15 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be given a $1.02 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.87%. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio is 68.34%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

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.