Regal Investment Advisors LLC Acquires 10,079 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Regal Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 4.2% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 251,933 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 10,079 shares during the period. Altria Group makes up about 0.7% of Regal Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 27th biggest position. Regal Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $11,476,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Albion Financial Group UT grew its stake in Altria Group by 49.1% in the 1st quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 2,767 shares of the company’s stock worth $121,000 after buying an additional 911 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 1.6% in the 1st quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,027,886 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,960,000 after purchasing an additional 16,541 shares in the last quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 7.2% in the 1st quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. now owns 5,953 shares of the company’s stock valued at $260,000 after purchasing an additional 399 shares in the last quarter. &PARTNERS purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the 1st quarter valued at $556,000. Finally, Bridgefront Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Altria Group during the 4th quarter valued at $982,000. Institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on MO shares. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Altria Group from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Altria Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 28th. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $52.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Altria Group from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Altria Group from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $49.67.

Altria Group Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE MO opened at $51.05 on Monday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $51.50 and its 200-day moving average price is $47.15. The company has a market cap of $87.68 billion, a PE ratio of 10.68, a PEG ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.65. Altria Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $39.06 and a 52-week high of $54.95.

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

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be given a dividend of $1.02 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 16th. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.99%. This is a boost from Altria Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.98. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 85.36%.

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.