Altria Group (NYSE:MO) Stock Price Up 0.4%

Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) shares rose 0.4% on Friday . The company traded as high as $46.25 and last traded at $46.12. Approximately 2,143,105 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 81% from the average daily volume of 11,574,645 shares. The stock had previously closed at $45.95.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MO has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Altria Group from $36.10 to $36.50 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research report on Monday, April 8th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Altria Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, April 14th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $50.00 target price on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Monday, March 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Altria Group currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $46.90.

Altria Group Trading Up 0.3 %

The company's 50 day simple moving average is $43.24 and its 200-day simple moving average is $41.69. The company has a market capitalization of $79.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.64, a PEG ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.66.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $1.15 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.15. The firm had revenue of $4.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.71 billion. Altria Group had a net margin of 34.81% and a negative return on equity of 222.80%. Altria Group's revenue for the quarter was down 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.18 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.11 EPS for the current year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.98 per share. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 8.51%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 14th. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 82.01%.

Altria Group announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Thursday, February 1st that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 1.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Altria Group news, VP Charles N. Whitaker sold 22,487 shares of Altria Group stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.95, for a total transaction of $988,303.65. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 173,485 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,624,665.75. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.09% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Altria Group

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of MO. Maryland Capital Advisors Inc. grew its position in Altria Group by 154.4% in the first quarter. Maryland Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 575 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 349 shares during the period. Accordant Advisory Group Inc acquired a new position in Altria Group in the first quarter valued at about $26,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new position in Altria Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. BNP Paribas acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group in the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, Nemes Rush Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 103.2% in the third quarter. Nemes Rush Group LLC now owns 636 shares of the company's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 323 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.41% of the company's stock.

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.