abrdn plc Sells 18,036 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

abrdn plc trimmed its position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 4.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 428,341 shares of the company’s stock after selling 18,036 shares during the period. abrdn plc’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $17,279,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Altshuler Shaham Ltd acquired a new position in Altria Group during the third quarter worth $26,000. Nemes Rush Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 103.2% in the 3rd quarter. Nemes Rush Group LLC now owns 636 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 323 shares during the last quarter. ZRC Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Altria Group by 67.6% in the 4th quarter. ZRC Wealth Management LLC now owns 677 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 273 shares in the last quarter. Legacy Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Altria Group during the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in Altria Group by 1,800.0% during the 3rd quarter. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. now owns 703 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 666 shares during the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on the company. StockNews.com downgraded Altria Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, April 14th. Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $50.00 price target on shares of Altria Group in a research report on Monday, March 25th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $36.10 to $36.50 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $46.90.

Altria Group Stock Performance

MO opened at $42.92 on Thursday. Altria Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $39.06 and a fifty-two week high of $48.04. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $42.05 and a 200 day moving average of $41.45. The firm has a market cap of $73.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.39, a PEG ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.65.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The company reported $1.18 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.17 by $0.01. Altria Group had a net margin of 33.21% and a negative return on equity of 244.55%. The firm had revenue of $5.02 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.06 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.18 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 25th will be paid a $0.98 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 22nd. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 9.13%. Altria Group’s payout ratio is presently 85.78%.

Altria Group announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Thursday, February 1st that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 1.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Altria Group Company Profile

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.