Ridgepath Capital Management LLC Purchases 2,603 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Ridgepath Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 4.6% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 58,876 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,603 shares during the quarter. Altria Group comprises approximately 2.4% of Ridgepath Capital Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest position. Ridgepath Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $3,005,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Altria Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. BNP Paribas bought a new position in shares of Altria Group during the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Altria Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 63.9% during the 2nd quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 667 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 260 shares during the period. Finally, Fairman Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 85.1% during the 3rd quarter. Fairman Group LLC now owns 892 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 410 shares during the period. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Altria Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MO opened at $49.71 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $85.38 billion, a PE ratio of 10.40, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.65. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $51.42 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $48.11. Altria Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $39.06 and a fifty-two week high of $54.95.

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

Altria Group Increases Dividend

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently commented on MO shares. UBS Group lifted their target price on Altria Group from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Citigroup lifted their price target on Altria Group from $44.50 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Altria Group from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. StockNews.com cut Altria Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Bank of America dropped their price target on Altria Group from $57.00 to $53.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Altria Group has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $48.20.

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.