MUFG Securities EMEA plc Invests $10.38 Million in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Key Points

• MUFG Securities EMEA plc acquired 173,000 shares of Altria Group, Inc., valued at approximately $10.38 million, making it 0.2% of their portfolio and the company's 27th largest holding.
• Several large institutional investors increased their stakes in Altria Group, with GAMMA Investing LLC boosting their position by 6,969.4% in the first quarter.
• Altria Group's stock currently holds a consensus rating of "Hold" from analysts, with a recent average price target of $59.13.

MUFG Securities EMEA plc purchased a new position in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 173,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,383,000. Altria Group comprises about 0.2% of MUFG Securities EMEA plc's investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest position.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of MO. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC raised its holdings in Altria Group by 88.5% in the 1st quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC now owns 8,536 shares of the company's stock valued at $512,000 after acquiring an additional 4,007 shares during the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in 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. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Altria Group by 17.8% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 36,028 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,162,000 after acquiring an additional 5,440 shares during the last quarter. Patron Partners LLC raised its holdings in Altria Group by 12.2% in the 1st quarter. Patron Partners LLC now owns 12,217 shares of the company's stock valued at $733,000 after acquiring an additional 1,325 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Altria Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $3,091,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.41% of the company's stock.

Altria Group Stock Performance

MO traded up $1.52 on Monday, hitting $65.71. 10,644,925 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,386,891. The business's fifty day moving average is $59.72 and its 200 day moving average is $57.88. Altria Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $48.86 and a fifty-two week high of $65.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $110.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.45 and a beta of 0.59.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.44 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $5.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 in the prior year, the business earned $1.31 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 10th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th were paid a dividend of $1.02 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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 presently 78.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MO has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Needham & Company LLC upgraded shares of Altria Group to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Altria Group from $49.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Altria Group from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Altria Group in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. They issued an "underperform" rating and a $50.00 price target for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $59.13.

Altria Group Company 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.