Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Shares Sold by Sunbelt Securities Inc.

Sunbelt Securities Inc. decreased its holdings in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 10.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 76,030 shares of the company's stock after selling 8,796 shares during the quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc.'s holdings in Altria Group were worth $4,563,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Redwood Park Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Altria Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Inlight Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Altria Group during the 1st quarter worth approximately $31,000. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in Altria Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Promus Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Altria Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Pinney & Scofield Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.41% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MO has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Wall Street Zen lowered Altria Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Barclays upped their price target on Altria Group from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $60.00 price target on Altria Group in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Needham & Company LLC upgraded Altria Group to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on Altria Group from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Altria Group currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $56.00.

Altria Group Stock Up 0.0%

NYSE:MO traded up $0.02 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $58.81. 11,468,943 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,548,659. The business has a 50-day moving average of $59.22 and a two-hundred day moving average of $56.29. Altria Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $45.73 and a twelve month high of $61.26. The company has a market capitalization of $99.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.28, a PEG ratio of 3.44 and a beta of 0.61.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $1.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $4.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.64 billion. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 295.44% and a net margin of 43.09%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.15 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 10th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th will be issued a $1.02 dividend. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.94%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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.