Ellenbecker Investment Group Sells 2,616 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Ellenbecker Investment Group decreased its holdings in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 6.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 35,935 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,616 shares during the period. Altria Group accounts for approximately 0.3% of Ellenbecker Investment Group’s holdings, making the stock its 28th biggest holding. Ellenbecker Investment Group’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $1,835,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Maryland Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its stake 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 purchasing an additional 349 shares during the last quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Altria Group in the second quarter worth about $27,000. BNP Paribas bought a new stake in Altria Group in the first quarter worth about $27,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Altria Group in the second quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Westend Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Altria Group in the first quarter worth about $29,000. Institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $57.00 to $53.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $44.50 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target 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. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Altria Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Altria Group from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $48.20.

Altria Group Trading Down 1.2 %

NYSE:MO opened at $49.13 on Friday. Altria Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $39.06 and a 12 month high of $54.95. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $51.55 and a 200-day simple moving average of $47.71. The company has a market capitalization of $84.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.40, a PEG ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.65.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last posted its earnings results 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). The business had revenue of $6.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.39 billion. Altria Group had a net margin of 42.25% and a negative return on equity of 232.55%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.31 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.11 EPS for the current year.

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 16th were given a $1.02 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 16th. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.30%. This is an increase from Altria Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.98. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio is 85.36%.

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.