Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Shares Sold by Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC

Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 41.2% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 34,205 shares of the company’s stock after selling 23,922 shares during the period. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $1,558,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of MO. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 15.6% in the 4th quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 40,074 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,617,000 after purchasing an additional 5,418 shares in the last quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. increased its holdings in Altria Group by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 56,234 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,269,000 after buying an additional 1,031 shares in the last quarter. Tritonpoint Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $252,000. Bristlecone Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 31.2% during the 4th quarter. Bristlecone Advisors LLC now owns 8,183 shares of the company’s stock worth $330,000 after acquiring an additional 1,946 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $906,000. 57.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Altria Group Stock Performance

MO stock traded up $0.41 during trading on Thursday, hitting $50.44. The stock had a trading volume of 3,521,260 shares, compared to its average volume of 10,700,720. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $39.06 and a 1-year high of $51.40. The stock has a market cap of $86.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.66. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $47.33 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $44.19.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by ($0.04). Altria Group had a net margin of 42.25% and a negative return on equity of 232.55%. The firm had revenue of $6.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.39 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.31 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 14.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 14th were issued a dividend of $0.98 per share. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.77%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 14th. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 82.01%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MO has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Altria Group from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Argus upgraded shares of Altria Group to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 31st. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Altria Group from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Altria Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Altria Group has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $47.90.

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.