Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Shares Sold by Independent Advisor Alliance

Key Points

• Independent Advisor Alliance reduced its stake in Altria Group by 14%, selling 21,608 shares, and now holds 132,839 shares valued at approximately $7.97 million.
• Altria Group recently **beat earnings expectations** with reported EPS of $1.44, exceeding estimates by $0.07, despite a slight revenue increase of 0.2% year-over-year.
• Analysts have mixed sentiments on Altria Group, with current ratings indicating a consensus of **"hold"** and an average target price of $59.13 after various rating adjustments by brokerages.

Independent Advisor Alliance trimmed its position in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 14.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 132,839 shares of the company's stock after selling 21,608 shares during the quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance's holdings in Altria Group were worth $7,973,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Sierra Ocean LLC lifted its position in shares of Altria Group by 226.3% during the first quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC now owns 509 shares of the company's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 353 shares during the last quarter. Inlight Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the first quarter worth $31,000. Pinney & Scofield Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. TruNorth Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Altria Group by 51.8% in the first quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 636 shares of the company's stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 217 shares during the period. Finally, Abound Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Altria Group in the first quarter worth about $40,000. 57.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Altria Group Price Performance

Shares of MO stock traded up $0.08 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $65.58. 10,747,081 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 9,150,774. The stock has a market cap of $110.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.68, a P/E/G ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 0.59. The stock's fifty day moving average is $60.06 and its two-hundred day moving average is $58.08. Altria Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $48.86 and a 52-week high of $66.29.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.07. Altria Group had a net margin of 37.24% and a negative return on equity of 295.26%. The firm had revenue of $5.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.21 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.31 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th were issued a dividend of $1.02 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 16th. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.2%. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio is 78.92%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MO has been the subject of a number of research reports. Needham & Company LLC raised shares of Altria Group to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. They issued an "underperform" rating and a $50.00 price objective for the company. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $49.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Finally, UBS Group raised shares of Altria Group from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $47.00 to $59.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to 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.