Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Shares Purchased by Verdence Capital Advisors LLC

Verdence Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 2.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 76,223 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 2,155 shares during the quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $3,472,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Maryland Capital Advisors Inc. grew its position in Altria Group by 154.4% in the first quarter. Maryland Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 575 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 349 shares during the last quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Altria Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. BNP Paribas acquired a new position in Altria Group in the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Altria Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Westend Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Altria Group in the 1st quarter worth approximately $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MO has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Argus raised shares of Altria Group to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, May 31st. StockNews.com raised shares of Altria Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, June 28th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $37.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of Altria Group from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Altria Group from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $47.08.

Altria Group Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:MO traded up $0.27 during trading on Monday, reaching $52.71. 8,055,113 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 10,457,163. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $39.06 and a 1-year high of $53.08. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $48.53 and a 200 day simple moving average of $45.11. The firm has a market cap of $90.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.66.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $1.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.35 by ($0.04). Altria Group had a net margin of 42.25% and a negative return on equity of 232.55%. The business had revenue of $6.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.39 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.31 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.11 EPS for the current year.

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 10th. Investors of record on Monday, September 16th will be paid a $1.02 dividend. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.74%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 16th. This is a positive change from Altria Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.98. Altria Group’s payout ratio is presently 82.01%.

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.