Juno Financial Group LLC Makes New Investment in Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Juno Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 7,918 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $457,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Teacher Retirement System of Texas boosted its stake in Altria Group by 14.5% in the fourth quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 1,169,116 shares of the company’s stock worth $67,411,000 after purchasing an additional 148,228 shares in the last quarter. West Michigan Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 11.1% during the fourth quarter. West Michigan Advisors LLC now owns 43,883 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,577,000 after acquiring an additional 4,397 shares during the period. Kanawha Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Kanawha Capital Management LLC now owns 19,546 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,127,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares during the period. EPG Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. EPG Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,207 shares of the company’s stock valued at $416,000 after acquiring an additional 335 shares during the period. Finally, HB Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 118,458 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,830,000 after acquiring an additional 4,072 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Altria Group news, SVP Charles N. Whitaker sold 27,908 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.57, for a total value of $1,885,743.56. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 180,869 shares in the company, valued at $12,221,318.33. This represents a 13.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on MO shares. Argus raised Altria Group to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Citigroup upped their price target on Altria Group from $57.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Altria Group from $47.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on Altria Group from $72.00 to $68.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Bank of America upped their price target on Altria Group from $72.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $65.88.

Altria Group Trading Up 0.8%

NYSE:MO opened at $65.14 on Thursday. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $54.70 and a 1-year high of $70.51. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $66.58 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $62.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $108.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.85, a PEG ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.41.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.32 by ($0.02). Altria Group had a net margin of 29.84% and a negative return on equity of 287.61%. The company had revenue of $5.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.02 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.30 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 25th will be paid a $1.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 25th. This represents a $4.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.5%. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 103.16%.

Altria Group Profile

Altria Group, Inc (NYSE: MO) is a U.S.-based consumer goods company whose principal business is the manufacture and sale of tobacco products. Headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, the company’s operations are focused primarily on the U.S. market and include the production, marketing and distribution of cigarettes, smokeless tobacco and cigars. Its flagship cigarette franchise in the United States is sold through its operating subsidiaries and is among the most recognizable cigarette brands in the country.

Altria’s principal operating businesses include Philip Morris USA (cigarettes), U.S.