Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Shares Sold by Mezzasalma Advisors LLC

Mezzasalma Advisors LLC reduced its position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 4.9% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 5,710 shares of the company’s stock after selling 294 shares during the period. Mezzasalma Advisors LLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $299,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Financial Life Planners acquired a new position in Altria Group during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its holdings in Altria Group by 420.0% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 572 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 462 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Altria Group in the third quarter worth approximately $34,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the third quarter valued at $41,000. Finally, Fairman Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 85.1% in the third quarter. Fairman Group LLC now owns 892 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 410 shares during the period. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MO has been the subject of a number of research reports. Barclays raised their price objective on Altria Group from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Altria Group from $54.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Altria Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on Altria Group from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Altria Group from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $53.29.

Altria Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MO opened at $52.65 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $89.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.04, a P/E/G ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.64. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $53.19 and its 200 day simple moving average is $52.42. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $39.25 and a 1 year high of $58.03.

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

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 26th were given a dividend of $1.02 per share. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 26th. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 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.