Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Stock Position Reduced by Lee Danner & Bass Inc.

Lee Danner & Bass Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 26.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 23,062 shares of the company’s stock after selling 8,304 shares during the quarter. Lee Danner & Bass Inc.’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $930,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC boosted its stake in Altria Group by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC now owns 5,825 shares of the company’s stock valued at $246,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares in the last quarter. Taylor & Morgan Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Altria Group by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Taylor & Morgan Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,981 shares of the company’s stock valued at $483,000 after purchasing an additional 246 shares during the period. Day & Ennis LLC increased its stake in shares of Altria Group by 4.9% in the third quarter. Day & Ennis LLC now owns 5,353 shares of the company’s stock worth $225,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the period. Whitener Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Altria Group by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Whitener Capital Management Inc. now owns 9,797 shares of the company’s stock valued at $412,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Salvus Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Altria Group by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Salvus Wealth Management LLC now owns 14,326 shares of the company’s stock valued at $578,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Altria Group Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of MO opened at $42.57 on Tuesday. Altria Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $39.06 and a twelve month high of $48.04. The company has a 50 day moving average of $41.95 and a 200-day moving average of $41.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $73.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.32, a P/E/G ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.65.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The company reported $1.18 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.17 by $0.01. Altria Group had a net margin of 33.21% and a negative return on equity of 244.55%. The firm had revenue of $5.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.06 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.18 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group declared that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Thursday, February 1st that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 1.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 25th will be issued a dividend of $0.98 per share. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 9.21%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 22nd. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 85.78%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on MO. Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $50.00 target price on shares of Altria Group in a report on Monday, March 25th. StockNews.com downgraded Altria Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, April 14th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on Altria Group from $36.10 to $36.50 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, April 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Altria Group currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $46.90.

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.