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

Bristlecone Advisors LLC lessened its position in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 13.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,906 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,211 shares during the quarter. Bristlecone Advisors LLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $413,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Soltis Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in Altria Group by 24.3% during the 4th quarter. Soltis Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,761 shares of the company’s stock worth $301,000 after purchasing an additional 1,126 shares in the last quarter. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Altria Group during the 4th quarter worth about $71,000. MBA Advisors LLC increased its position in Altria Group by 8.2% during the 4th quarter. MBA Advisors LLC now owns 12,973 shares of the company’s stock worth $678,000 after purchasing an additional 983 shares in the last quarter. Savant Capital LLC increased its position in Altria Group by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 104,107 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,444,000 after purchasing an additional 3,484 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wagner Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Altria Group by 11.0% during the 4th quarter. Wagner Wealth Management LLC now owns 14,834 shares of the company’s stock worth $776,000 after purchasing an additional 1,472 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MO has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Bank of America upgraded 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. StockNews.com upgraded Altria Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Altria Group from $54.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on Altria Group from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on Altria Group from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $53.29.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MO opened at $53.84 on Tuesday. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $39.25 and a 1 year high of $58.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $91.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.22, a PEG ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.64. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $53.09 and a 200-day simple moving average of $52.49.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The company reported $1.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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%. Analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 26th were given a dividend of $1.02 per share. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.58%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 26th. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.29%.

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.