Cullinan Associates Inc. Sells 5,034 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Cullinan Associates Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 13.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 32,377 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,034 shares during the quarter. Cullinan Associates Inc.’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $1,412,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in MO. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its position in shares of Altria Group by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 13,279,658 shares of the company’s stock worth $535,701,000 after purchasing an additional 242,442 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Altria Group by 17.0% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 9,259,451 shares of the company’s stock worth $373,526,000 after acquiring an additional 1,343,094 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its stake in Altria Group by 8.5% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 9,174,355 shares of the company’s stock valued at $381,278,000 after purchasing an additional 722,258 shares in the last quarter. LSV Asset Management lifted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 15.2% in the fourth quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 4,681,943 shares of the company’s stock worth $188,870,000 after buying an additional 617,900 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in Altria Group by 24.4% in the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,674,441 shares of the company’s stock valued at $188,567,000 after acquiring an additional 915,478 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Altria Group Stock Up 0.0 %

Shares of MO stock opened at $46.05 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $79.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.63, a PEG ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.66. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $45.26 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $42.78. Altria Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $39.06 and a 52 week high of $47.19.

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

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be given a dividend of $0.98 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 14th. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 8.51%. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 82.01%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on MO shares. Argus raised Altria Group to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 31st. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Altria Group from $36.10 to $36.50 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Stifel Nicolaus reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $50.00 price target on shares of Altria Group in a research report on Monday, March 25th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Altria Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, June 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $46.90.

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.