ProShare Advisors LLC Boosts Stock Position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

ProShare Advisors LLC grew its position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 14.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 248,113 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 30,668 shares during the quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC's holdings in Altria Group were worth $12,974,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Truvestments Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 4,581 shares of the company's stock valued at $240,000 after buying an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. Enterprise Financial Services Corp boosted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Enterprise Financial Services Corp now owns 5,052 shares of the company's stock worth $264,000 after purchasing an additional 194 shares during the period. Horst & Graben Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Altria Group by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Horst & Graben Wealth Management LLC now owns 13,015 shares of the company's stock valued at $681,000 after buying an additional 198 shares during the period. Asset Dedication LLC boosted its position in Altria Group by 27.7% in the 4th quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 921 shares of the company's stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. Finally, MCF Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Altria Group by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 14,321 shares of the company's stock worth $762,000 after buying an additional 201 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.41% of the company's stock.

Altria Group Trading Up 1.4%

Altria Group stock opened at $58.87 on Friday. Altria Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $43.83 and a 12-month high of $61.26. The stock has a market cap of $99.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $58.02 and a 200-day simple moving average of $55.47.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $1.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.64 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.15 earnings per share. Altria Group's quarterly revenue was down 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 10th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th will be given a $1.02 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.93%. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 68.34%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on MO. Barclays upped their target price 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 target price on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. StockNews.com lowered shares of Altria Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Altria Group from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Altria Group from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $56.00.

Altria Group Company 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.

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