PNC Financial Services Group Inc. Sells 41,734 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lessened its holdings in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 2.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,881,006 shares of the company’s stock after selling 41,734 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc.’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $98,358,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. M&G PLC increased its stake in Altria Group by 7.0% in the 3rd quarter. M&G PLC now owns 91,765 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,680,000 after buying an additional 6,041 shares during the last quarter. TFB Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Altria Group by 2.7% during the third quarter. TFB Advisors LLC now owns 10,054 shares of the company’s stock valued at $513,000 after acquiring an additional 269 shares during the last quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Altria Group by 2.0% during the third quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. now owns 23,122 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,204,000 after acquiring an additional 454 shares during the period. Beckerman Institutional LLC purchased a new position in Altria Group in the third quarter worth $247,000. Finally, CWA Asset Management Group LLC bought a new position in Altria Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $11,660,000. Institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have commented on MO shares. Bank of America raised shares of Altria Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $55.00 to $65.00 in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Altria Group from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Altria Group presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $53.29.

Altria Group Price Performance

NYSE MO opened at $57.79 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $97.70 billion, a PE ratio of 8.82, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.56. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $40.65 and a 1 year high of $58.59. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $53.15 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $53.10.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The company reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.01. Altria Group had a net margin of 46.90% and a negative return on equity of 258.72%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 25th will be paid a $1.02 dividend. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 25th. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 62.29%.

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.