Altria Group (NYSE:MO) Upgraded by StockNews.com to Buy

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) was upgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report issued on Friday.

MO has been the subject of several other research reports. UBS Group lifted their price target on Altria Group from $36.10 to $36.50 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. Argus upgraded Altria Group to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 31st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus restated a “buy” rating and set a $50.00 price target 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 issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $46.90.

Altria Group Price Performance

MO stock opened at $45.46 on Friday. Altria Group has a 12 month low of $39.06 and a 12 month high of $47.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $78.08 billion, a PE ratio of 9.51, a P/E/G ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.64. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $45.04 and its 200-day simple moving average is $42.69.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $1.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.15. The company had revenue of $4.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.71 billion. Altria Group had a net margin of 34.81% and a negative return on equity of 222.80%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.18 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Altria Group will post 5.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Altria Group

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Altria Group

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Maryland Capital Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Altria Group by 154.4% in the first quarter. Maryland Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 575 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 349 shares during the period. Accordant Advisory Group Inc bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the first quarter valued at about $26,000. BNP Paribas bought a new position in Altria Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Westend Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Altria Group during the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, ZRC Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Altria Group by 67.6% during the 4th quarter. ZRC Wealth Management LLC now owns 677 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 273 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

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.