ING Groep NV Lowers Stake in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

ING Groep NV reduced its holdings in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 44.5% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 128,291 shares of the company’s stock after selling 102,937 shares during the period. ING Groep NV’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $6,548,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Altria Group during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Altria Group during the second quarter valued at about $30,000. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. grew its holdings in Altria Group by 63.9% during the 2nd quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 667 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 260 shares in the last quarter. Lynx Investment Advisory bought a new stake in Altria Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $44,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd boosted its stake in Altria Group by 33.4% during the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,047 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 262 shares during the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MO has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Bank of America decreased their price objective on Altria Group from $57.00 to $53.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. UBS Group raised their price objective 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 upped their price objective on Altria Group from $44.50 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Altria Group from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Altria Group has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $51.33.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Altria Group stock opened at $55.94 on Friday. Altria Group, Inc. has a one year low of $39.25 and a one year high of $56.32. The company has a market cap of $94.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 0.64. The business has a fifty day moving average of $51.54 and a two-hundred day moving average of $49.13.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $6.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.33 billion. Altria Group had a net margin of 42.82% and a negative return on equity of 233.80%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.28 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict 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. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 16th were issued a $1.02 dividend. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.29%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 16th. This is an increase from Altria Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.98. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio is 68.92%.

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.