Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Shares Acquired by Fisher Asset Management LLC

Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 24.9% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 62,355 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 12,444 shares during the quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $3,183,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Altria Group during the 2nd quarter worth about $27,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Altria Group during the 2nd quarter worth about $30,000. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. increased its position in Altria Group by 63.9% during the 2nd quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 667 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 260 shares in the last quarter. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Altria Group during the 3rd quarter worth about $41,000. Finally, Lynx Investment Advisory purchased a new stake in Altria Group during the 2nd quarter worth about $44,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on MO shares. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Altria Group from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on Altria Group from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Bank of America lowered their price target on Altria Group from $57.00 to $53.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. StockNews.com upgraded Altria Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Altria Group from $54.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Altria Group has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $51.33.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MO opened at $57.65 on Friday. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $39.25 and a 1 year high of $58.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $97.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.74, a PEG ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.64. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $52.40 and a 200-day simple moving average of $50.01.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.03. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 233.80% and a net margin of 42.82%. The business had revenue of $6.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.33 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.28 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.11 earnings per share for the current year.

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.