Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Shares Purchased by Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd.

Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 7.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 44,541 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,046 shares during the quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $2,273,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Altria Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $30,000. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. increased its stake in shares of Altria Group by 63.9% in the second quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 667 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 260 shares during the period. Fairman Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Lynx Investment Advisory acquired a new position in Altria Group during the second quarter valued at $44,000. 57.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Altria Group stock opened at $55.40 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $93.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.36, a P/E/G ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 0.64. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $51.52 and its 200 day moving average price is $49.09. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $39.25 and a 1 year high of $55.62.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.03. Altria Group had a net margin of 42.82% and a negative return on equity of 233.80%. The business had revenue of $6.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.33 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.28 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.11 EPS for the current year.

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 16th were issued a dividend of $1.02 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 16th. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.36%. This is a boost from Altria Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.98. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 68.92%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MO has been the topic of several analyst reports. Bank of America cut their price target on Altria Group from $57.00 to $53.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. StockNews.com raised Altria Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Altria Group from $54.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on shares of Altria Group from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $51.33.

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.