Altria Group (NYSE:MO) PT Lowered to $53.00 at Bank of America

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) had its target price reduced by Bank of America from $57.00 to $53.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the stock.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. UBS Group lifted their price target on Altria Group from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, September 9th. StockNews.com downgraded Altria Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Barclays lifted their price target on Altria Group from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Altria Group from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on Altria Group from $44.50 to $48.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $48.20.

Altria Group Trading Down 0.9 %

MO stock opened at $49.72 on Tuesday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $51.55 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $47.71. The firm has a market cap of $85.40 billion, a PE ratio of 10.40, a P/E/G ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.65. Altria Group has a 1-year low of $39.06 and a 1-year high of $54.95.

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

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 16th were given a dividend of $1.02 per share. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.21%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 16th. This is an increase from Altria Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.98. Altria Group’s payout ratio is 85.36%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Altria Group

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of MO. Maryland Capital Advisors Inc. increased its position in 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 buying an additional 349 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the first quarter worth approximately $27,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the second quarter worth approximately $27,000. Westend Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the first quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Hobbs Group Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the second quarter worth approximately $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

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.