Whittier Trust Co. Has $4.31 Million Stock Holdings in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Whittier Trust Co. lowered its position in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 10.6% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 94,564 shares of the company’s stock after selling 11,216 shares during the quarter. Whittier Trust Co.’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $4,306,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MO. Maryland Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Altria Group by 154.4% during the 1st quarter. Maryland Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 575 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 349 shares in the last quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Altria Group during the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. BNP Paribas bought a new stake in Altria Group in the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Altria Group in the second quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Westend Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Altria Group during the first quarter worth $29,000. 57.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Altria Group Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:MO traded up $0.12 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $53.34. The company had a trading volume of 1,684,616 shares, compared to its average volume of 10,348,264. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $39.06 and a 1-year high of $53.53. The stock has a market cap of $91.62 billion, a PE ratio of 11.16, a P/E/G ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.66. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $48.86 and its 200 day moving average price is $45.29.

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

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be paid a dividend of $1.02 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 16th. This is a positive change from Altria Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.98. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.65%. Altria Group’s payout ratio is currently 85.36%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Altria Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 28th. Barclays increased their price target on Altria Group from $37.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. Argus upgraded Altria Group to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 31st. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Altria Group from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Altria Group from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $47.08.

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.