SignalPoint Asset Management LLC Takes $253,000 Position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

SignalPoint Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 5,803 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $253,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. FSC Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Altria Group by 21.3% in the 4th quarter. FSC Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,719 shares of the company’s stock worth $110,000 after buying an additional 477 shares during the last quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC purchased a new position in Altria Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. KPP Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in Altria Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $3,128,000. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Altria Group by 293.6% in the 3rd quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 55,546 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,336,000 after purchasing an additional 41,432 shares during the period. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB increased its stake in Altria Group by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,011,345 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,727,000 after purchasing an additional 4,789 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Altria Group Trading Up 0.7 %

Altria Group stock opened at $45.74 on Friday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $44.71 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $42.58. Altria Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $39.06 and a 12 month high of $47.19. The company has a market capitalization of $78.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.64.

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, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15. The firm had revenue of $4.72 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.71 billion. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 222.80% and a net margin of 34.81%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.18 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.11 EPS for the current year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.98 per share. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.57%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 14th. Altria Group’s payout ratio is currently 82.01%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on MO shares. UBS Group boosted their target price on Altria Group from $36.10 to $36.50 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Argus raised Altria Group to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, May 31st. StockNews.com cut Altria Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $50.00 price target on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Monday, March 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Altria Group has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $46.90.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Charles N. Whitaker sold 22,487 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.95, for a total transaction of $988,303.65. Following the completion of the sale, 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 can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

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.