Romano Brothers AND Company Decreases Stock Position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Romano Brothers AND Company reduced its stake in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 3.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 13,475 shares of the company’s stock after selling 459 shares during the period. Romano Brothers AND Company’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $588,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. FSC Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Altria Group by 21.3% during the fourth quarter. FSC Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,719 shares of the company’s stock valued at $110,000 after acquiring an additional 477 shares during the last quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Altria Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. KPP Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in Altria Group in the third quarter worth $3,128,000. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Altria Group by 293.6% in the third quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 55,546 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,336,000 after acquiring an additional 41,432 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB raised its holdings 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 in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling 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 stock was sold at an average price of $43.95, for a total value of $988,303.65. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Altria Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MO opened at $45.55 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $78.24 billion, a PE ratio of 9.53, a PEG ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.64. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $45.19 and a 200-day moving average price of $42.75. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $39.06 and a 1-year high of $47.19.

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

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 10th. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th will be given a $0.98 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 14th. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 8.61%. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 82.01%.

About Altria Group

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.