Commonwealth Equity Services LLC Sells 15,152 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 1.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,441,156 shares of the company’s stock after selling 15,152 shares during the quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $75,358,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its position in Altria Group by 420.0% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 572 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 462 shares during the period. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the 3rd quarter valued at $34,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Promus Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Altria Group in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MO opened at $58.50 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $98.90 billion, a PE ratio of 8.93, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.56. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $53.64 and its 200-day moving average price is $53.27. Altria Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $40.65 and a 52-week high of $59.67.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The company reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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, analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 25th will be issued a $1.02 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 25th. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.97%. Altria Group’s payout ratio is 62.29%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on MO. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of 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. Bank of America raised Altria Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $55.00 to $65.00 in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Altria Group presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $53.29.

Altria Group Company 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.