Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Sells 4,271 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC decreased its stake in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 1.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 354,547 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,271 shares during the quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $18,096,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Altria Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. BNP Paribas purchased a new position in shares of Altria Group in the first quarter valued at $27,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Altria Group in the second quarter worth $30,000. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. increased its position in Altria Group by 63.9% in the second quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 667 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 260 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fairman Group LLC raised its stake in Altria Group by 85.1% during the third quarter. Fairman Group LLC now owns 892 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 410 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MO opened at $50.27 on Tuesday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $51.40 and its 200-day moving average price is $48.17. Altria Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $39.25 and a fifty-two week high of $54.95. The company has a market cap of $86.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.52, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.65.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.35 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $6.21 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.39 billion. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 232.55% and a net margin of 42.25%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.31 earnings per share. Sell-side 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 was paid on Thursday, October 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 16th were given a dividend of $1.02 per share. This is an increase from Altria Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.98. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 16th. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.12%. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 85.36%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MO has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Citigroup lifted their price target on Altria Group from $44.50 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. StockNews.com downgraded Altria Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Bank of America dropped their target price on Altria Group from $57.00 to $53.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on Altria Group from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $48.20.

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.