4,523 Shares in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Acquired by Portside Wealth Group LLC

Portside Wealth Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 4,523 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $271,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of MO. Redwood Park Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new position in Altria Group during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Altria Group in the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Promus Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Pinney & Scofield Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. 57.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Altria Group from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Altria Group from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Wall Street Zen cut Altria Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Needham & Company LLC raised Altria Group to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Altria Group has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $56.00.

Altria Group Stock Down 0.3%

MO traded down $0.18 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $59.74. 10,168,742 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,637,053. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $58.75 and its 200-day moving average price is $56.11. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $43.92 and a 1-year high of $61.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $100.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.12, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.60.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 258.72% and a net margin of 46.90%. The company had revenue of $4.52 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.64 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.15 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 10th. Investors 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 6.83%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 68.34%.

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.