Richard Bernstein Advisors LLC Sells 59,195 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Richard Bernstein Advisors LLC lowered its position in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 54.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 49,604 shares of the company’s stock after selling 59,195 shares during the quarter. Richard Bernstein Advisors LLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $3,277,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MO. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position in Altria Group by 64.7% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 17,702 shares of the company’s stock worth $926,000 after buying an additional 6,954 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 86.3% in the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 6,361 shares of the company’s stock valued at $373,000 after purchasing an additional 2,946 shares during the period. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. boosted its position in shares of Altria Group by 6.9% in the 2nd quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 9,630 shares of the company’s stock valued at $565,000 after purchasing an additional 618 shares during the period. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Altria Group by 1.6% in the first quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 17,101 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,026,000 after purchasing an additional 267 shares in the last quarter. Finally, RWA Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in Altria Group by 1.7% during the 2nd quarter. RWA Wealth Partners LLC now owns 15,057 shares of the company’s stock worth $883,000 after acquiring an additional 256 shares during the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Altria Group Trading Up 0.6%

MO stock opened at $66.93 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $63.44 and its two-hundred day moving average is $62.57. Altria Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $52.82 and a 52 week high of $70.51. The company has a market capitalization of $111.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.45.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.32 by ($0.02). Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 287.61% and a net margin of 29.84%.The company’s quarterly revenue was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.30 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 30th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 25th will be issued a $1.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 25th. This represents a $4.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.3%. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 103.16%.

Insider Transactions at Altria Group

In other news, SVP Charles N. Whitaker sold 27,908 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.57, for a total value of $1,885,743.56. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 180,869 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,221,318.33. The trade was a 13.37% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.08% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Altria Group from $72.00 to $68.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 30th. Argus raised Altria Group to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $47.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Citigroup lifted their price target on Altria Group from $57.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on shares of Altria Group from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Altria Group currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $65.11.

About Altria Group

Altria Group, Inc (NYSE: MO) is a U.S.-based consumer goods company whose principal business is the manufacture and sale of tobacco products. Headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, the company’s operations are focused primarily on the U.S. market and include the production, marketing and distribution of cigarettes, smokeless tobacco and cigars. Its flagship cigarette franchise in the United States is sold through its operating subsidiaries and is among the most recognizable cigarette brands in the country.

Altria’s principal operating businesses include Philip Morris USA (cigarettes), U.S.