Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Shares Sold by Traynor Capital Management Inc.

Traynor Capital Management Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 1.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 22,589 shares of the company’s stock after selling 390 shares during the quarter. Traynor Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $1,181,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. True Wealth Design LLC increased its position in shares of Altria Group by 420.0% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 572 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 462 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Altria Group in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Altria Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Fairman Group LLC lifted its stake in Altria Group by 85.1% during the third quarter. Fairman Group LLC now owns 892 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 410 shares in the last quarter. Finally, IFS Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Altria Group by 330.4% during the fourth quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 977 shares of the company’s stock worth $51,000 after buying an additional 750 shares during the period. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Barclays increased their target price on Altria Group from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Altria Group in a report on Thursday, January 16th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $54.00 price objective for the company. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Altria Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Altria Group from $54.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on Altria Group from $44.50 to $48.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $53.43.

Altria Group Trading Down 1.3 %

Shares of MO opened at $50.82 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $86.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.58, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.64. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $54.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $52.11. Altria Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $39.25 and a twelve month high of $58.03.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.03. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 233.80% and a net margin of 42.82%. The company had revenue of $6.26 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.33 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.28 EPS. Altria Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 26th were given a $1.02 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 26th. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.03%. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 68.92%.

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.