Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. Raises Position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 22.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 82,288 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 15,213 shares during the period. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $4,200,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. BNP Paribas bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Altria Group during the second quarter valued at about $27,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Altria Group in the second quarter valued at about $30,000. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 63.9% in the second quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 667 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 260 shares during the period. Finally, Lynx Investment Advisory purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the second quarter worth about $44,000. 57.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Altria Group Trading Up 0.2 %

MO opened at $49.92 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $51.46 and a 200 day moving average of $47.95. Altria Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $39.06 and a 12 month high of $54.95. The firm has a market cap of $85.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.65.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $1.31 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by ($0.04). Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 232.55% and a net margin of 42.25%. The company had revenue of $6.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.39 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.31 EPS. Altria Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th were issued a $1.02 dividend. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 8.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 16th. This is a positive change from Altria Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.98. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 85.36%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $44.50 to $48.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Altria Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. Bank of America cut their price objective on Altria Group from $57.00 to $53.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on Altria Group from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $48.20.

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.