Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Shares Purchased by Fayez Sarofim & Co

Fayez Sarofim & Co raised its stake in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 6.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,040,250 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 352,931 shares during the quarter. Fayez Sarofim & Co owned about 0.36% of Altria Group worth $315,845,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Stifel Financial Corp grew its position in Altria Group by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 1,452,188 shares of the company's stock valued at $75,934,000 after buying an additional 41,930 shares during the period. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury grew its holdings in Altria Group by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury now owns 601,409 shares of the company's stock valued at $31,448,000 after purchasing an additional 18,058 shares during the period. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. increased its position in Altria Group by 42.5% in the fourth quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 198,351 shares of the company's stock worth $10,378,000 after buying an additional 59,166 shares in the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its stake in shares of Altria Group by 47.6% in the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 111,544 shares of the company's stock worth $5,833,000 after buying an additional 35,983 shares during the period. Finally, Tradition Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Altria Group by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. Tradition Wealth Management LLC now owns 14,494 shares of the company's stock valued at $758,000 after buying an additional 701 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.41% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $60.00 price objective on Altria Group in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Altria Group from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $54.00.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MO traded down $0.24 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $58.58. 8,941,376 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,856,770. Altria Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $42.40 and a 12-month high of $60.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $99.04 billion, a PE ratio of 8.94, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $56.97 and a 200-day moving average price of $54.42.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The company reported $1.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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%. Research analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 25th will be paid a dividend of $1.02 per share. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.96%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 25th. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 62.29%.

Altria Group 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.