Altria Group (NYSE:MO) Sets New 1-Year High - Still a Buy?

Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $58.59 and last traded at $57.83, with a volume of 807588 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $57.31.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MO has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Barclays lifted their price target on Altria Group from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Bank of America upgraded Altria Group from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $55.00 to $65.00 in a report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Altria Group from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $53.29.

Altria Group Price Performance

The firm's 50 day moving average price is $52.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $53.01. The firm has a market cap of $94.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.64.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The company reported $1.29 earnings per share (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%. Analysts expect that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 25th will be issued a dividend of $1.02 per share. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 25th. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio is 62.29%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Altria Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp grew its position in shares of Altria Group by 5.6% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 73,481,686 shares of the company's stock worth $3,821,831,000 after buying an additional 3,910,738 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Altria Group by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 59,805,286 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,127,218,000 after acquiring an additional 2,296,972 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Altria Group by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 41,938,507 shares of the company's stock worth $2,193,687,000 after acquiring an additional 1,134,748 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 22,273,491 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,164,681,000 after purchasing an additional 76,004 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in shares of Altria Group by 9.6% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 16,432,535 shares of the company's stock worth $859,257,000 after purchasing an additional 1,444,021 shares during the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.