Linscomb Wealth Inc. Sells 868 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Linscomb Wealth Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 13.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,712 shares of the company’s stock after selling 868 shares during the period. Linscomb Wealth Inc.’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $292,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Altria Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Altria Group during the second quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. increased its holdings in Altria Group by 63.9% during the second quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 667 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 260 shares during the period. Fairman Group LLC raised its stake in Altria Group by 85.1% in the third quarter. Fairman Group LLC now owns 892 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 410 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lynx Investment Advisory purchased a new stake in Altria Group during the second quarter worth $44,000. Institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MO opened at $55.94 on Friday. Altria Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $39.25 and a fifty-two week high of $56.32. The company has a market cap of $94.80 billion, a PE ratio of 9.45, a P/E/G ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 0.64. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $51.59 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $49.22.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.38 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.03. Altria Group had a net margin of 42.82% and a negative return on equity of 233.80%. The company had revenue of $6.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.33 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.28 EPS. Altria Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict 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. Investors of record on Monday, September 16th were given a $1.02 dividend. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.29%. This is an increase from Altria Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.98. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 16th. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 68.92%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on Altria Group from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. UBS Group lifted their target price on Altria Group from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Altria Group from $57.00 to $53.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $54.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Altria Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $51.33.

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.