Souders Financial Advisors Takes $207,000 Position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Souders Financial Advisors acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 4,550 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $207,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. KPP Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in Altria Group by 1.8% during the second quarter. KPP Advisory Services LLC now owns 60,118 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,738,000 after purchasing an additional 1,037 shares during the period. Founders Financial Alliance LLC increased its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. Founders Financial Alliance LLC now owns 62,004 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,824,000 after buying an additional 1,087 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its position in shares of Altria Group by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 1,001,756 shares of the company’s stock valued at $45,630,000 after buying an additional 17,471 shares during the period. 3Chopt Investment Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Altria Group by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. 3Chopt Investment Partners LLC now owns 66,371 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,089,000 after buying an additional 772 shares during the period. Finally, Granite Bay Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Altria Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $6,992,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Altria Group Price Performance

NYSE MO opened at $50.93 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $87.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.65, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.65. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $39.06 and a 1-year high of $54.95. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $51.57 and a two-hundred day moving average of $47.25.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $6.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.39 billion. Altria Group had a net margin of 42.25% and a negative return on equity of 232.55%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.31 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 10th. Investors of record on Monday, September 16th will be paid a dividend of $1.02 per share. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 8.01%. This is a boost from Altria Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.98. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 16th. Altria Group’s payout ratio is presently 85.36%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. UBS Group raised their target price on Altria Group from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Barclays raised their price objective on Altria Group from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 9th. StockNews.com raised shares of Altria Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 28th. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Altria Group from $52.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Two 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target 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.