Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Holdings Lowered by DT Investment Partners LLC

DT Investment Partners LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 12.7% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 3,479 shares of the company’s stock after selling 506 shares during the quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $182,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. CFC Planning Co LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the fourth quarter valued at $2,052,000. First Merchants Corp increased its position in Altria Group by 56.1% in the 4th quarter. First Merchants Corp now owns 27,983 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,463,000 after purchasing an additional 10,058 shares during the last quarter. Palacios Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Altria Group in the 4th quarter worth about $291,000. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC increased its position in Altria Group by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 11,484 shares of the company’s stock worth $600,000 after purchasing an additional 244 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Avestar Capital LLC increased its position in Altria Group by 9.6% in the 4th quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 10,546 shares of the company’s stock worth $552,000 after purchasing an additional 923 shares during the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MO has been the topic of several research reports. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Altria Group from $54.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Bank of America raised Altria Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $55.00 to $65.00 in a report on Friday, December 6th. StockNews.com upgraded Altria Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on Altria Group from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Altria Group from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $53.29.

Altria Group Price Performance

Altria Group stock opened at $53.71 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $91.04 billion, a PE ratio of 8.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.64. Altria Group, Inc. has a one year low of $39.25 and a one year high of $58.03. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $52.90 and a 200 day simple moving average of $52.55.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The company reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.01. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 258.72% and a net margin of 46.90%. Equities analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 26th were paid a $1.02 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 26th. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.60%. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 62.29%.

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.