Vector Group (NYSE:VGR) Earns Buy Rating from Analysts at StockNews.com

StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Vector Group (NYSE:VGR) in a research report released on Sunday morning. The brokerage issued a buy rating on the stock.

Separately, Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Vector Group from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th.

Vector Group Stock Performance

NYSE:VGR opened at $14.94 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $13.16 and its 200 day simple moving average is $11.57. Vector Group has a twelve month low of $9.27 and a twelve month high of $15.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.88 and a beta of 1.04.

Vector Group (NYSE:VGR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30 by $0.04. Vector Group had a negative return on equity of 26.96% and a net margin of 14.05%. The company had revenue of $371.91 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $362.90 million. On average, analysts predict that Vector Group will post 1.22 earnings per share for the current year.

Vector Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 12th. Investors of record on Friday, August 30th will be paid a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 30th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.35%. Vector Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 68.97%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vector Group

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of VGR. Optimist Retirement Group LLC acquired a new position in Vector Group in the fourth quarter worth $949,000. Duality Advisers LP acquired a new position in shares of Vector Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $900,000. Tidal Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vector Group during the 1st quarter valued at about $527,000. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Vector Group by 6.4% during the 1st quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 1,181,224 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,946,000 after buying an additional 70,685 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Vector Group by 27.9% during the first quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 130,525 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,431,000 after acquiring an additional 28,476 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 64.09% of the company’s stock.

About Vector Group

Vector Group Ltd., through its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of cigarettes in the United States. It operates in two segments, Tobacco and Real Estate. The company produces cigarettes under the Montego, EAGLE 20’s, Pyramid, Grand Prix, Liggett Select, Eve, and USA brand names, as well as various partner and private label brands.