VeraBank N.A. Boosts Stock Position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

VeraBank N.A. grew its holdings in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 57.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 23,506 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 8,534 shares during the quarter. VeraBank N.A.’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $1,200,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 170.4% during the first quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 101,087 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,409,000 after purchasing an additional 63,701 shares during the period. PFG Advisors grew its holdings in Altria Group by 4.4% in the 1st quarter. PFG Advisors now owns 6,782 shares of the company’s stock worth $296,000 after acquiring an additional 284 shares during the last quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Altria Group by 7.2% in the first quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. now owns 5,953 shares of the company’s stock valued at $260,000 after acquiring an additional 399 shares during the period. Chilton Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Altria Group by 33.2% during the first quarter. Chilton Capital Management LLC now owns 3,799 shares of the company’s stock valued at $166,000 after acquiring an additional 946 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 36.7% during the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 1,054,101 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,980,000 after purchasing an additional 283,069 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Altria Group Price Performance

NYSE:MO traded up $0.51 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $54.05. 5,712,292 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,669,546. The company has a market cap of $91.60 billion, a PE ratio of 9.13, a P/E/G ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.64. Altria Group, Inc. has a one year low of $39.25 and a one year high of $55.05. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $51.50 and a 200 day moving average price of $48.85.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.03. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 233.80% and a net margin of 42.82%. The company had revenue of $6.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.33 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.28 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 10th. Investors of record on Monday, September 16th were given a dividend of $1.02 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 16th. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.55%. This is an increase from Altria Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.98. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 68.92%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Altria Group from $54.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. StockNews.com upgraded Altria Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Bank of America cut their price target on shares of Altria Group from $57.00 to $53.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on shares of Altria Group from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Altria Group currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $51.33.

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.