Altria Group (NYSE:MO) Stock Price Down 0.6%

Shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) traded down 0.6% on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $49.08 and last traded at $49.12. 1,108,342 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 90% from the average session volume of 10,726,322 shares. The stock had previously closed at $49.40.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. 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 note on Monday, April 8th. StockNews.com raised shares of Altria Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 28th. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, Argus raised shares of Altria Group to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Altria Group has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $47.10.

Altria Group Trading Up 0.8 %

The company has a market cap of $85.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.66. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $46.48 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $43.57.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $1.15 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15. Altria Group had a net margin of 34.81% and a negative return on equity of 222.80%. The company had revenue of $4.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.71 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.18 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast 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 was paid on Wednesday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 14th were given a $0.98 dividend. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.87%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 14th. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 82.01%.

Insider Transactions at Altria Group

In other news, VP Charles N. Whitaker sold 22,487 shares of the 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 $7,624,665.75. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.09% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Altria Group

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Maryland Capital Advisors Inc. raised its position in Altria Group by 154.4% during the first quarter. Maryland Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 575 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 349 shares in the last quarter. Accordant Advisory Group Inc bought a new position in Altria Group during the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Altria Group during the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. BNP Paribas bought a new position in Altria Group during the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, Hobbs Group Advisors LLC bought a new position in Altria Group during the second quarter valued at approximately $30,000. 57.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.