Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Shares Sold by Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV

Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV trimmed its holdings in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 3.2% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 621,653 shares of the company’s stock after selling 20,355 shares during the period. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $32,506,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Financial Life Planners purchased a new position in Altria Group during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Redwood Park Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Altria Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Promus Capital LLC purchased a new position in Altria Group in the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Shares of MO opened at $59.30 on Friday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $57.54 and its 200-day simple moving average is $54.78. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $43.37 and a 1 year high of $60.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $100.25 billion, a PE ratio of 9.05, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.54.

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, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $4.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.64 billion. Altria Group had a net margin of 46.90% and a negative return on equity of 258.72%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.15 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 25th were paid a dividend of $1.02 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 25th. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.88%. Altria Group’s payout ratio is 68.34%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Citigroup lifted their target price on Altria Group from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Altria Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Altria Group from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Altria Group from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Altria Group currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $55.57.

About Altria Group

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.