Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Shares Bought by Simplicity Wealth LLC

Simplicity Wealth LLC raised its stake in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 152.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 58,268 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 35,168 shares during the period. Simplicity Wealth LLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $3,497,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Redwood Park Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Altria Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Promus Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Pinney & Scofield Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on MO shares. Needham & Company LLC raised Altria Group to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Altria Group from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Citigroup raised their target price on Altria Group from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. UBS Group raised their price target on Altria Group from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Altria Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Altria Group presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $56.00.

Altria Group Stock Down 0.3%

NYSE:MO opened at $59.05 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $58.49 and its 200 day moving average price is $56.03. The company has a market capitalization of $99.46 billion, a PE ratio of 9.01, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.60. Altria Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $43.83 and a 52-week high of $61.26.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $1.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $4.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.64 billion. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 258.72% and a net margin of 46.90%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.15 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be issued a $1.02 dividend. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.91%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. Altria Group’s payout ratio is currently 68.34%.

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.