Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. Increases Stock Holdings in Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. boosted its stake in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 6.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 273,587 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 16,581 shares during the quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $18,073,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its holdings in Altria Group by 62.5% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 16,395,070 shares of the company’s stock valued at $954,446,000 after purchasing an additional 6,302,819 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Altria Group by 1.0% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 159,717,148 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,364,216,000 after buying an additional 1,599,923 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP grew its stake in shares of Altria Group by 1,094.0% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,158,437 shares of the company’s stock valued at $67,919,000 after acquiring an additional 1,061,413 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Altria Group by 1.2% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 72,367,263 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,315,438,000 after acquiring an additional 886,583 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 7.2% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 12,073,682 shares of the company’s stock worth $797,587,000 after acquiring an additional 814,665 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Altria Group Price Performance

Altria Group stock opened at $67.06 on Friday. Altria Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $52.82 and a 12 month high of $70.51. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $63.07 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $62.64. The company has a market cap of $112.12 billion, a PE ratio of 16.32, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.45.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $1.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.32 by ($0.02). Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 287.61% and a net margin of 29.84%.During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.30 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 25th will be paid a $1.06 dividend. This represents a $4.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.3%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 25th. Altria Group’s payout ratio is presently 103.16%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Citigroup raised their price objective on Altria Group from $57.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. UBS Group increased their target price on Altria Group from $63.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Argus raised shares of Altria Group to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Altria Group from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on shares of Altria Group from $72.00 to $68.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 30th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $64.33.

Altria Group Company Profile

Altria Group, Inc (NYSE: MO) is a U.S.-based consumer goods company whose principal business is the manufacture and sale of tobacco products. Headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, the company’s operations are focused primarily on the U.S. market and include the production, marketing and distribution of cigarettes, smokeless tobacco and cigars. Its flagship cigarette franchise in the United States is sold through its operating subsidiaries and is among the most recognizable cigarette brands in the country.

Altria’s principal operating businesses include Philip Morris USA (cigarettes), U.S.