North Star Asset Management Inc. Has $1.31 Million Holdings in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

North Star Asset Management Inc. cut its position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 3.4% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 28,690 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,017 shares during the period. North Star Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $1,307,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MO. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC increased its stake in Altria Group by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 11,269 shares of the company’s stock valued at $513,000 after buying an additional 217 shares during the last quarter. Conning Inc. grew its position in shares of Altria Group by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. Conning Inc. now owns 9,794 shares of the company’s stock valued at $446,000 after acquiring an additional 219 shares during the period. Patten & Patten Inc. TN grew its position in shares of Altria Group by 1.6% in the 1st quarter. Patten & Patten Inc. TN now owns 14,293 shares of the company’s stock valued at $623,000 after acquiring an additional 224 shares during the period. Hilltop National Bank grew its position in shares of Altria Group by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 14,667 shares of the company’s stock valued at $668,000 after acquiring an additional 226 shares during the period. Finally, WMG Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Altria Group by 4.1% in the 2nd quarter. WMG Financial Advisors LLC now owns 5,784 shares of the company’s stock valued at $263,000 after acquiring an additional 229 shares during the period. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently commented on MO. StockNews.com raised shares of Altria Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 28th. Argus raised shares of Altria Group to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 31st. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Altria Group from $37.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of Altria Group from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Altria Group from $52.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $48.58.

Altria Group Stock Down 1.1 %

Shares of Altria Group stock opened at $53.69 on Friday. Altria Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $39.06 and a twelve month high of $54.95. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $50.15 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $46.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $92.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 0.65.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $1.31 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.35 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $6.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.39 billion. Altria Group had a net margin of 42.25% and a negative return on equity of 232.55%. Altria Group’s quarterly revenue was up 14.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.31 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be given a $1.02 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 16th. This is a boost from Altria Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.98. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.60%. 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.