Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Shares Sold by RNC Capital Management LLC

RNC Capital Management LLC lessened its holdings in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 12.4% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 975,373 shares of the company’s stock after selling 137,922 shares during the period. Altria Group makes up 2.4% of RNC Capital Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. RNC Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $39,347,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Viking Fund Management LLC boosted its holdings in Altria Group by 16.7% in the fourth quarter. Viking Fund Management LLC now owns 176,600 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,124,000 after acquiring an additional 25,300 shares in the last quarter. PFG Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. PFG Investments LLC now owns 14,344 shares of the company’s stock worth $579,000 after purchasing an additional 559 shares during the period. Smith Anglin Financial LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 12.7% during the fourth quarter. Smith Anglin Financial LLC now owns 7,375 shares of the company’s stock worth $298,000 after purchasing an additional 832 shares during the period. Tectonic Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 11.3% during the fourth quarter. Tectonic Advisors LLC now owns 100,281 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,045,000 after purchasing an additional 10,185 shares during the period. Finally, Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the fourth quarter worth about $353,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Altria Group Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE:MO opened at $43.66 on Thursday. Altria Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $39.06 and a 12-month high of $48.04. The company has a market capitalization of $76.99 billion, a PE ratio of 9.55, a PEG ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.65. The business has a 50 day moving average of $41.34 and a two-hundred day moving average of $41.53.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The company reported $1.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.17 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $5.02 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.06 billion. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 244.55% and a net margin of 33.21%. Altria Group’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.18 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group announced that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Thursday, February 1st that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 1.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 25th will be given a $0.98 dividend. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 22nd. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 85.78%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on MO. UBS Group reaffirmed a “sell” rating and set a $36.10 target price on shares of Altria Group in a report on Tuesday, January 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $50.00 target price on shares of Altria Group in a report on Monday. Finally, StockNews.com raised Altria Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $46.82.

Altria Group 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.