Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Shares Purchased by Financial Sense Advisors Inc.

Financial Sense Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 51.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 91,624 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 31,146 shares during the quarter. Altria Group accounts for approximately 1.6% of Financial Sense Advisors Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 14th biggest position. Financial Sense Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Altria Group were worth $4,791,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in MO. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. True Wealth Design LLC raised its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 420.0% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 572 shares of the company's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 462 shares in the last quarter. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $41,000. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Altria Group Price Performance

Altria Group stock traded up $0.67 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $55.00. The company's stock had a trading volume of 5,710,398 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,214,361. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $52.61 and its 200-day simple moving average is $52.66. Altria Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $39.25 and a 52-week high of $58.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $93.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.40, a PEG ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.64.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The company reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.01. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 258.72% and a net margin of 46.90%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 26th were issued a $1.02 dividend. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 26th. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 62.29%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on MO. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Altria Group from $54.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Barclays upped their price objective on Altria Group from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. StockNews.com raised Altria Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Altria Group from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on Altria Group from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $53.29.

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.