QRG Capital Management Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 3.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 711,521 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 20,438 shares during the quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in Altria Group were worth $42,706,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Redwood Park Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Altria Group during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in Altria Group in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Altria Group during the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Promus Capital LLC bought a new position in Altria Group during the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Pinney & Scofield Inc. purchased a new position in Altria Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Institutional investors own 57.41% of the company's stock.

Altria Group Trading Down 1.7%

Shares of MO traded down $1.04 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $58.77. 10,533,672 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 8,644,635. The stock has a market capitalization of $99.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.60. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $43.92 and a 1 year high of $61.26. The firm's fifty day moving average is $58.75 and its 200-day moving average is $56.09.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $1.23 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $4.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.64 billion. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 258.72% and a net margin of 46.90%. The firm's revenue was down 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.15 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be given a dividend of $1.02 per share. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 68.34%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on MO shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $60.00 price target on shares of Altria Group in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Citigroup upped their target price on Altria Group from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. UBS Group increased their target price on Altria Group from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Altria Group from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Altria Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $56.00.

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.