Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Shares Purchased by Financial Security Advisor Inc.

Financial Security Advisor Inc. raised its stake in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 6.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 86,789 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,484 shares during the period. Altria Group accounts for approximately 1.3% of Financial Security Advisor Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 16th biggest holding. Financial Security Advisor Inc.’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $3,786,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. FSC Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Altria Group by 21.3% in the 4th quarter. FSC Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,719 shares of the company’s stock worth $110,000 after purchasing an additional 477 shares during the last quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000. KPP Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the 3rd quarter valued at about $3,128,000. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Altria Group by 293.6% during the 3rd quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 55,546 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,336,000 after buying an additional 41,432 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB grew its position in shares of Altria Group by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,011,345 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,727,000 after buying an additional 4,789 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Altria Group

In other news, VP Charles N. Whitaker sold 22,487 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.95, for a total value of $988,303.65. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 173,485 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,624,665.75. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on MO shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Altria Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $50.00 price objective on shares of Altria Group in a research report on Monday, March 25th. Argus raised shares of Altria Group to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 31st. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $36.10 to $36.50 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, April 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $46.90.

Altria Group Trading Up 0.0 %

Altria Group stock traded up $0.02 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $46.05. 5,458,423 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 11,176,995. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $45.26 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $42.78. The firm has a market cap of $79.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.60, a PEG ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.66. Altria Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $39.06 and a fifty-two week high of $47.19.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $1.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15. The firm had revenue of $4.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.71 billion. Altria Group had a net margin of 34.81% and a negative return on equity of 222.80%. Altria Group’s revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.18 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be paid a $0.98 dividend. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.51%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 14th. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 82.01%.

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.