Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Shares Sold by First Merchants Corp

First Merchants Corp trimmed its holdings in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 20.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 22,367 shares of the company's stock after selling 5,616 shares during the quarter. First Merchants Corp's holdings in Altria Group were worth $1,342,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Redwood Park Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Altria Group during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Inlight Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Altria Group during the first quarter worth $31,000. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Promus Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Pinney & Scofield Inc. acquired a new stake in Altria Group during the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MO traded down $0.18 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $58.57. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,899,906 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,526,759. The firm has a market cap of $98.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.81, a P/E/G ratio of 3.44 and a beta of 0.61. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $45.73 and a 1-year high of $61.26. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $59.22 and its 200-day moving average price is $56.30.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $1.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.04. Altria Group had a net margin of 43.09% and a negative return on equity of 295.44%. The firm had revenue of $4.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.64 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.15 EPS. Altria Group's revenue was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict 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 $1.02 dividend. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 68.34%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Barclays lifted their price target 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. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Altria Group from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Altria Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Needham & Company LLC raised shares of Altria Group to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $60.00 target price on Altria Group in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average 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.