Optimist Retirement Group LLC Boosts Stock Position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Optimist Retirement Group LLC grew its position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 5.1% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 42,920 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,098 shares during the period. Altria Group makes up 1.0% of Optimist Retirement Group LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 29th largest position. Optimist Retirement Group LLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $1,955,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of MO. Gilbert & Cook Inc. boosted its holdings in Altria Group by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 12,928 shares of the company’s stock valued at $522,000 after purchasing an additional 413 shares during the last quarter. Aveo Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Aveo Capital Partners LLC now owns 10,845 shares of the company’s stock worth $437,000 after buying an additional 333 shares during the last quarter. 9258 Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 17.8% in the fourth quarter. 9258 Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,300 shares of the company’s stock worth $254,000 after buying an additional 953 shares during the last quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Altria Group during the fourth quarter worth about $217,000. Finally, Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd purchased a new position in Altria Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $788,000. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Altria Group Trading Up 0.1 %

MO stock opened at $50.55 on Thursday. Altria Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $39.06 and a 12-month high of $54.95. The business’s 50-day moving average is $51.15 and its 200 day moving average is $46.67. The stock has a market cap of $86.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.58, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.65.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 analysts’ expectations of $5.39 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.31 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 14.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be issued a dividend of $1.02 per share. This is a positive change from Altria Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.98. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 16th. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.07%. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 85.36%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on MO. Argus upgraded shares of Altria Group to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, May 31st. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Altria Group from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Bank of America upped their price target on Altria Group from $52.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on Altria Group from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $49.67.

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.