Penserra Capital Management LLC Purchases 10,454 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Penserra Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 235.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 14,890 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 10,454 shares during the period. Penserra Capital Management LLC's holdings in Altria Group were worth $893,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Redwood Park Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Altria Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Inlight Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group during the 1st quarter worth about $31,000. Sierra Ocean LLC lifted its position in shares of Altria Group by 226.3% during the 1st 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. Finally, Pinney & Scofield Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group during the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. 57.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Altria Group in a research report on Wednesday. They set an "underperform" rating and a $50.00 price objective for the company. Wall Street Zen cut Altria Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Needham & Company LLC raised Altria Group to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $60.00 price target on Altria Group in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on Altria Group from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $56.75.

Altria Group Price Performance

Shares of MO traded down $0.76 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $57.79. The company had a trading volume of 9,428,820 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,665,072. Altria Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $47.11 and a twelve month high of $61.26. The company's 50-day moving average is $59.25 and its 200-day moving average is $56.61. The company has a market capitalization of $97.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.68, a P/E/G ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 0.59.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last issued 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. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 295.44% and a net margin of 43.09%. The business had revenue of $4.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.64 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.15 EPS. Altria Group's quarterly revenue was down 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 10th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th were issued a dividend of $1.02 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 16th. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.06%. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio is 68.34%.

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.