Merit Financial Group LLC Raises Holdings in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Merit Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 8.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 80,197 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,114 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $4,193,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. True Wealth Design LLC increased its stake in Altria Group by 420.0% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 572 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 462 shares during the period. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Fairman Group LLC grew its holdings in Altria Group by 85.1% during the third quarter. Fairman Group LLC now owns 892 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 410 shares during the period. Finally, IFS Advisors LLC raised its position in Altria Group by 330.4% in the fourth quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 977 shares of the company’s stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 750 shares in the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MO has been the topic of several research analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Altria Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Altria Group from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Altria Group in a research report on Thursday. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $54.00 price target for the company. Citigroup upped their price target on Altria Group from $44.50 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Altria Group from $54.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Altria Group has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $53.43.

Altria Group Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of MO stock opened at $51.92 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $87.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.77, a PEG ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 0.64. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $54.29 and a 200 day moving average price of $51.95. Altria Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $39.25 and a twelve month high of $58.03.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $6.26 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.33 billion. Altria Group had a net margin of 42.82% and a negative return on equity of 233.80%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 18.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.28 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 26th were given a $1.02 dividend. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.86%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 26th. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 68.92%.

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.