Assetmark Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Key Points

• Assetmark Inc. increased its stake in Altria by 4.3% in Q4 to 2,681,499 shares (about 0.16% of the company) valued at approximately $154.6 million.
• Altria declared a quarterly dividend of $1.06 per share (annualized $4.24) with an ex-dividend date of March 25 and a yield of ~6.3%, though the payout ratio is roughly 103%.
• Altria reported Q4 EPS of $1.30, missing estimates by $0.02 while revenue of $5.08 billion beat estimates, and analysts hold a consensus “Hold” rating with an average target of $65.88.

Assetmark Inc. grew its holdings in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 4.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,681,499 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 110,002 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. owned about 0.16% of Altria Group worth $154,615,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in MO. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 64.7% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 17,702 shares of the company's stock valued at $926,000 after acquiring an additional 6,954 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 86.3% in the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 6,361 shares of the company's stock valued at $373,000 after acquiring an additional 2,946 shares during the last quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. boosted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 6.9% in the 2nd quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 9,630 shares of the company's stock valued at $565,000 after acquiring an additional 618 shares during the last quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL purchased a new stake in Altria Group during the second quarter worth $346,000. Finally, AXA S.A. purchased a new stake in Altria Group during the second quarter worth $5,752,000. 57.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Altria Group Stock Performance

NYSE:MO opened at $66.80 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $66.60 and a two-hundred day moving average of $62.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $111.64 billion, a PE ratio of 16.25, a P/E/G ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 0.41. Altria Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $54.70 and a fifty-two week high of $70.51.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.32 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $5.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.02 billion. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 287.61% and a net margin of 29.84%.The business's revenue was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.30 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 25th will be given a dividend of $1.06 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 25th. This represents a $4.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.3%. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 103.16%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MO has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Argus raised shares of Altria Group to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Altria Group from $47.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on shares of Altria Group from $72.00 to $68.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 30th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Altria Group from $67.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, March 9th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Altria Group from $57.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Altria Group has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $65.88.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Altria Group news, SVP Charles N. Whitaker sold 27,908 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.57, for a total transaction of $1,885,743.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 180,869 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,221,318.33. This represents a 13.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Altria Group Company Profile

Altria Group, Inc NYSE: MO is a U.S.-based consumer goods company whose principal business is the manufacture and sale of tobacco products. Headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, the company's operations are focused primarily on the U.S. market and include the production, marketing and distribution of cigarettes, smokeless tobacco and cigars. Its flagship cigarette franchise in the United States is sold through its operating subsidiaries and is among the most recognizable cigarette brands in the country.

Altria's principal operating businesses include Philip Morris USA (cigarettes), U.S.

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