Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Shares Sold by Park National Corp OH

Park National Corp OH cut its holdings in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 10.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 25,181 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,931 shares during the period. Park National Corp OH’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $1,098,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MO. First Financial Bank Trust Division increased its position in shares of Altria Group by 7.1% during the 1st quarter. First Financial Bank Trust Division now owns 7,317 shares of the company’s stock worth $319,000 after purchasing an additional 485 shares during the last quarter. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the fourth quarter valued at about $805,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Altria Group by 5.7% in the 4th quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 14,827 shares of the company’s stock valued at $598,000 after acquiring an additional 799 shares during the period. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,008,000. Finally, Skyline Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Altria Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $368,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Altria Group Price Performance

MO opened at $44.80 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $76.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.37, a PEG ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.64. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $44.47 and a 200 day moving average price of $42.52. Altria Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $39.06 and a 12 month high of $47.19.

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

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be given a dividend of $0.98 per share. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 14th. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 82.01%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Altria Group

In other Altria Group news, VP Charles N. Whitaker sold 22,487 shares of Altria Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.95, for a total value of $988,303.65. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 173,485 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,624,665.75. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.09% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. UBS Group upped their price target on Altria Group from $36.10 to $36.50 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. StockNews.com raised Altria Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 12th. Argus raised Altria Group to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 31st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $50.00 price objective on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Monday, March 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $46.90.

Altria Group 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.