Davis R M Inc. Boosts Stake in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Davis R M Inc. raised its stake in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 13.1% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 9,300 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,079 shares during the quarter. Davis R M Inc.’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $375,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MO. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new stake in Altria Group during the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Nemes Rush Group LLC grew its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 323 shares in the last quarter. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Altria Group in the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. ZRC Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Altria Group by 67.6% in the fourth quarter. ZRC Wealth Management LLC now owns 677 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 273 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Altria Group by 1,800.0% during the third quarter. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. now owns 703 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 666 shares during the period. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Altria Group Stock Performance

MO stock traded down $0.56 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $45.76. The stock had a trading volume of 1,421,816 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,512,655. The stock has a market cap of $78.60 billion, a PE ratio of 9.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.66. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $43.51 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $41.86. Altria Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $39.06 and a 52-week high of $46.60.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $1.15 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.15. The company had revenue of $4.72 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.71 billion. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 222.80% and a net margin of 34.81%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.18 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be given a dividend of $0.98 per share. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 8.57%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 14th. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 82.01%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Charles N. Whitaker sold 22,487 shares of the firm’s 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 sale, the vice president now directly owns 173,485 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,624,665.75. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.09% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

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.