Aptus Capital Advisors LLC Buys 20,479 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Key Points

• Aptus Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in Altria Group, acquiring 20,479 shares and raising its total holdings to 254,535 shares, valued at approximately $15.3 million.
• Altria's recent quarterly results showed an earnings per share of $1.44, exceeding analysts' expectations, with revenue of $5.29 billion, a slight increase year-over-year.
• The stock has received mixed ratings from analysts, with a consensus rating of "Hold" and a price target averaging $59.13, reflecting differing outlooks on its investment potential.

Aptus Capital Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 8.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 254,535 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 20,479 shares during the period. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC's holdings in Altria Group were worth $15,277,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vista Investment Partners II LLC boosted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 4.2% during the first quarter. Vista Investment Partners II LLC now owns 4,302 shares of the company's stock valued at $258,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares during the period. Wealth Alliance LLC boosted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 1.9% during the first quarter. Wealth Alliance LLC now owns 9,452 shares of the company's stock valued at $567,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares during the period. Patten & Patten Inc. TN increased its position in shares of Altria Group by 1.5% in the first quarter. Patten & Patten Inc. TN now owns 12,049 shares of the company's stock valued at $723,000 after acquiring an additional 174 shares during the period. Baron Silver Stevens Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Altria Group by 2.7% in the first quarter. Baron Silver Stevens Financial Advisors LLC now owns 6,762 shares of the company's stock valued at $406,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares during the period. Finally, Ironwood Investment Counsel LLC increased its position in shares of Altria Group by 4.1% in the first quarter. Ironwood Investment Counsel LLC now owns 4,721 shares of the company's stock valued at $283,000 after acquiring an additional 187 shares during the period. 57.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Altria Group Trading Up 0.4%

MO opened at $65.82 on Monday. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $48.86 and a 1-year high of $66.29. The company has a market capitalization of $110.57 billion, a PE ratio of 12.73, a PEG ratio of 3.54 and a beta of 0.59. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $60.31 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $58.34.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly 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. The business had revenue of $5.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.21 billion. Altria Group had a net margin of 37.24% and a negative return on equity of 295.26%. The company's quarterly revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.31 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on MO shares. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Altria Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. UBS Group upgraded shares of Altria Group from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $47.00 to $59.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $63.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Needham & Company LLC upgraded shares of Altria Group to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Altria Group has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $59.13.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MO? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.