Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Receives $51.33 Average Target Price from Analysts

Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) has received an average rating of “Hold” from the seven research firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, three have given a hold recommendation and two have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $51.33.

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Altria Group from $57.00 to $53.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. StockNews.com raised Altria Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on Altria Group from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Citigroup raised their target price on Altria Group from $44.50 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Altria Group from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, September 9th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Altria Group

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its position in Altria Group by 420.0% in the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 572 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 462 shares during the last quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Altria Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Valley Wealth Managers Inc. increased its holdings in Altria Group by 63.9% in the 2nd quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 667 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 260 shares during the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Altria Group Trading Up 0.2 %

NYSE:MO opened at $57.74 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $52.55 and a two-hundred day moving average of $50.13. Altria Group has a 12 month low of $39.25 and a 12 month high of $58.03. The firm has a market cap of $97.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.28 and a beta of 0.64.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.38 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 firm had revenue of $6.26 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.33 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.28 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 18.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Altria Group will post 5.11 earnings per share for the current year.

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.