National Bank of Canada FI Sells 1,329,746 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

National Bank of Canada FI lowered its stake in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 51.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,242,788 shares of the company's stock after selling 1,329,746 shares during the quarter. National Bank of Canada FI owned 0.07% of Altria Group worth $51,674,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MO. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. increased its stake in Altria Group by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. now owns 37,428 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,510,000 after purchasing an additional 672 shares in the last quarter. Royal Fund Management LLC increased its position in shares of Altria Group by 7.9% during the fourth quarter. Royal Fund Management LLC now owns 5,464 shares of the company's stock worth $220,000 after acquiring an additional 401 shares in the last quarter. AJOVista LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the 4th quarter worth about $66,000. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Altria Group by 8.0% in the 4th quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 5,751 shares of the company's stock valued at $232,000 after acquiring an additional 424 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sapient Capital LLC acquired a new position in Altria Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $11,144,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.41% of the company's stock.

Altria Group Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE MO traded down $0.10 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $43.49. 9,025,462 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 11,846,990. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $42.56 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $41.49. The company has a market capitalization of $74.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 0.66. Altria Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $39.06 and a 52-week high of $46.82.

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

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Monday, March 25th were paid a $0.98 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 22nd. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 9.01%. Altria Group's payout ratio is presently 82.01%.

Altria Group announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Thursday, February 1st that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to buy up to 1.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Stifel Nicolaus restated a "buy" rating and issued a $50.00 price objective on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Monday, March 25th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $36.10 to $36.50 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Altria Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, April 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $46.90.

Insider Activity at Altria Group

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

Altria Group Profile

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.