Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Brokerages

Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) has received an average rating of “Hold” from the six brokerages that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $47.10.

A number of brokerages have weighed in on MO. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $36.10 to $36.50 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Altria Group from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Argus raised shares of Altria Group to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, May 31st. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Altria Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, June 28th.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Shares of Altria Group stock opened at $50.55 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $46.82 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $43.83. The company has a market cap of $86.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.66. Altria Group has a fifty-two week low of $39.06 and a fifty-two week high of $50.85.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 10th. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th were paid a dividend of $0.98 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 14th. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.75%. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 82.01%.

Insider Activity at Altria Group

In related news, VP Charles N. Whitaker sold 22,487 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.95, for a total transaction of $988,303.65. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 173,485 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,624,665.75. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Altria Group

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Maryland Capital Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Altria Group by 154.4% during the 1st quarter. Maryland Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 575 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 349 shares in the last quarter. Accordant Advisory Group Inc acquired a new position in Altria Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $26,000. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Altria Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. BNP Paribas acquired a new position in Altria Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Finally, MFA Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Altria Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

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.