Capital International Sarl Buys 10,392 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Capital International Sarl raised its stake in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 33.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 41,119 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 10,392 shares during the quarter. Capital International Sarl’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $2,150,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MO. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in Altria Group by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,159,890 shares of the company’s stock valued at $107,679,000 after buying an additional 46,697 shares during the period. Czech National Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 367,469 shares of the company’s stock worth $19,215,000 after purchasing an additional 19,893 shares during the period. CWA Asset Management Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Altria Group by 5.3% in the fourth quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 240,454 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,573,000 after purchasing an additional 12,011 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB increased its holdings in Altria Group by 48.8% during the 3rd quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 89,761 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,581,000 after purchasing an additional 29,421 shares during the period. Finally, Csenge Advisory Group raised its position in Altria Group by 29.1% during the 4th quarter. Csenge Advisory Group now owns 54,684 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,859,000 after purchasing an additional 12,320 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Altria Group from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Altria Group in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Altria Group from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $54.00.

Altria Group Price Performance

Shares of Altria Group stock opened at $58.13 on Friday. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $41.39 and a 1 year high of $60.18. The company has a 50-day moving average of $56.68 and a 200 day moving average of $54.25. The firm has a market cap of $98.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.87, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.54.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The company reported $1.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.01. Altria Group had a net margin of 46.90% and a negative return on equity of 258.72%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 25th will be given a $1.02 dividend. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.02%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 25th. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 62.29%.

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.