State of Wyoming Has $501,000 Position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

State of Wyoming lifted its position in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 169.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 9,585 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 6,033 shares during the period. State of Wyoming's holdings in Altria Group were worth $501,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of MO. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Redwood Park Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Altria Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Promus Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. 57.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently weighed in on MO shares. Barclays lifted their price target on Altria Group from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. UBS Group lifted their target price on Altria Group from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Altria Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Altria Group presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $56.00.

Altria Group Stock Up 0.9%

MO stock opened at $59.44 on Tuesday. Altria Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $43.83 and a 52 week high of $61.26. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $58.05 and a 200 day simple moving average of $55.55. The company has a market cap of $100.12 billion, a PE ratio of 9.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.60.

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

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.86%. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 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.

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