Altria Group (NYSE:MO) Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) were down 0.5% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $40.72 and last traded at $40.75. Approximately 10,407,370 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 19% from the average daily volume of 12,885,098 shares. The stock had previously closed at $40.95.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on MO shares. StockNews.com cut shares of Altria Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday. Stifel Nicolaus reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $50.00 price target on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Monday, March 25th. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price 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 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’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $46.90.

Altria Group Trading Down 0.5 %

The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $41.83 and its 200-day moving average price is $41.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $69.99 billion, a PE ratio of 8.92, a PEG ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.65.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The company reported $1.18 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.17 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $5.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.06 billion. Altria Group had a net margin of 33.21% and a negative return on equity of 244.55%. The firm’s revenue was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.18 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Monday, March 25th will be issued a dividend of $0.98 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 22nd. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 9.62%. Altria Group’s payout ratio is 85.78%.

Altria Group declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, February 1st that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to purchase up to 1.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Altria Group

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Empirical Finance LLC grew its stake in Altria Group by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 21,586 shares of the company’s stock worth $987,000 after acquiring an additional 225 shares in the last quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC grew its stake in Altria Group by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC now owns 5,825 shares of the company’s stock worth $246,000 after acquiring an additional 240 shares in the last quarter. Taylor & Morgan Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Altria Group by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Taylor & Morgan Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,981 shares of the company’s stock worth $483,000 after acquiring an additional 246 shares in the last quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Altria Group by 7.0% in the 1st quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,767 shares of the company’s stock worth $168,000 after acquiring an additional 247 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Day & Ennis LLC grew its stake in Altria Group by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. Day & Ennis LLC now owns 5,353 shares of the company’s stock worth $225,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.