Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Shares Bought by Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC

Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 10.4% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 52,344 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,932 shares during the quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $2,737,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on MO shares. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Altria Group from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Altria Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of Altria Group in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $54.00 price target on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on shares of Altria Group from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, 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 report on Friday, November 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Altria Group currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $53.43.

Altria Group Price Performance

Shares of MO opened at $51.17 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $54.10 and its 200-day moving average is $52.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $86.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.64, a P/E/G ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 0.64. Altria Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $39.25 and a 12-month high of $58.03.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $6.26 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.33 billion. Altria Group had a net margin of 42.82% and a negative return on equity of 233.80%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 18.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.28 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 26th were given a dividend of $1.02 per share. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 26th. Altria Group’s payout ratio 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.