Altria Group (NYSE:MO) Stock Price Down 0.2% – What’s Next?

Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) traded down 0.2% on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $54.94 and last traded at $55.42. 3,426,281 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 62% from the average session volume of 8,963,389 shares. The stock had previously closed at $55.56.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MO has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Altria Group from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group raised their price target on Altria Group from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Altria Group in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Altria Group has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $54.00.

Altria Group Trading Up 2.1 %

The firm has a market cap of $95.89 billion, a PE ratio of 8.67, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.54. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $55.89 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $53.91.

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

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 25th will be given a $1.02 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 25th. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.19%. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 62.29%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Altria Group

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in Altria Group in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Redwood Park Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Altria Group in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in shares of Altria Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Promus Capital LLC purchased a new position in Altria Group during the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. 57.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.