Chancellor Financial Group WB LP Takes Position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Chancellor Financial Group WB LP acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 6,046 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $316,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. 111 Capital purchased a new stake in Altria Group during the fourth quarter worth about $795,000. Northstar Financial Companies Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $639,000. Centaurus Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 12.0% in the fourth quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. now owns 17,577 shares of the company's stock valued at $919,000 after purchasing an additional 1,882 shares in the last quarter. Campbell Deegan Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $338,000. Finally, Anchor Pointe Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $206,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.41% of the company's stock.

Altria Group Stock Performance

NYSE MO traded down $0.05 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $59.43. 5,320,880 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,652,622. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $43.83 and a 1-year high of $61.26. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $58.23 and its 200 day simple moving average is $55.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $100.10 billion, a PE ratio of 9.07, a PEG 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 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $4.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.64 billion. Altria Group had a net margin of 46.90% and a negative return on equity of 258.72%. Altria Group's revenue was down 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.15 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

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 paid a dividend of $1.02 per share. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.87%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 68.34%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on MO. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $60.00 price target on shares of Altria Group in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Altria Group from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Altria Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Altria Group from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Altria Group from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Altria Group has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $56.00.

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.