Richardson Financial Services Inc. Has $220,000 Stake in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Richardson Financial Services Inc. reduced its holdings in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 6.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 4,835 shares of the company’s stock after selling 349 shares during the quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $220,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in MO. Maryland Capital Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Altria Group by 154.4% in the 1st quarter. Maryland Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 575 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 349 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the first quarter worth $27,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the second quarter worth $27,000. Pineridge Advisors LLC bought a new position in Altria Group during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Westend Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Altria Group during the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. 57.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MO has been the topic of several research analyst reports. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Altria Group from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Bank of America boosted their price target on Altria Group from $52.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Altria Group from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Argus raised Altria Group to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 31st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Altria Group from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $49.67.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MO opened at $50.55 on Thursday. Altria Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $39.06 and a 52-week high of $54.95. The business has a fifty day moving average of $51.15 and a two-hundred day moving average of $46.67. The stock has a market cap of $86.83 billion, a PE ratio of 10.58, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.65.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $1.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.35 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $6.21 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.39 billion. Altria Group had a net margin of 42.25% and a negative return on equity of 232.55%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.31 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be issued a $1.02 dividend. This is an increase from Altria Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.98. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 8.07%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 16th. Altria Group’s payout ratio is presently 85.36%.

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.