Altria Group (NYSE:MO) Trading Down 0.2% After Insider Selling

Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)’s stock price dropped 0.2% on Monday following insider selling activity. The stock traded as low as $43.46 and last traded at $43.50. Approximately 2,186,305 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 81% from the average daily volume of 11,766,087 shares. The stock had previously closed at $43.59.

Specifically, VP Charles N. Whitaker sold 22,487 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.95, for a total transaction of $988,303.65. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 173,485 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,624,665.75. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.09% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on MO. StockNews.com cut shares of Altria Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, April 14th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Altria Group from $36.10 to $36.50 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $50.00 target price on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Monday, March 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $46.90.

Altria Group Trading Up 0.8 %

The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $42.62 and its 200 day simple moving average is $41.50. The company has a market capitalization of $75.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.17, a P/E/G ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 0.66.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $1.15 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15. The business had revenue of $4.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.71 billion. Altria Group had a net margin of 34.81% and a negative return on equity of 222.80%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.18 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 25th were issued a $0.98 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 22nd. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 8.94%. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 82.01%.

Altria Group announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Thursday, February 1st that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 1.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Altria Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of MO. Maryland Capital Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Altria Group by 154.4% during the first quarter. Maryland Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 575 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 349 shares during the period. Accordant Advisory Group Inc acquired a new stake in Altria Group during the 1st quarter worth about $26,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new stake in Altria Group during the third quarter valued at about $26,000. BNP Paribas acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group in the first quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, Nemes Rush Group LLC increased its position in shares of Altria Group by 103.2% in the third quarter. Nemes Rush Group LLC now owns 636 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 323 shares in the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.