Altria Group (NYSE:MO) Shares Up 0.5% - Should You Buy?

Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) rose 0.5% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $54.15 and last traded at $54.13. Approximately 803,946 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 92% from the average daily volume of 9,854,854 shares. The stock had previously closed at $53.88.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have issued reports on MO shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Altria Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday. Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of Altria Group from $57.00 to $53.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of Altria Group from $54.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Altria Group from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Altria Group from $44.50 to $48.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $51.17.

Altria Group Trading Up 0.6 %

The company has a market capitalization of $92.44 billion, a PE ratio of 9.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.64. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $51.47 and its 200-day simple moving average is $48.66.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.03. Altria Group had a net margin of 42.82% and a negative return on equity of 233.80%. The firm had revenue of $6.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.33 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.28 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 18.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 16th were given a $1.02 dividend. This is an increase from Altria Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.98. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 16th. Altria Group's payout ratio is currently 68.92%.

Institutional Trading of Altria Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Altria Group during the second quarter worth about $27,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Altria Group during the second quarter worth approximately $30,000. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. raised its stake in shares of Altria Group by 63.9% in the 2nd quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 667 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 260 shares during the period. Lynx Investment Advisory acquired a new position in Altria Group during the 2nd quarter worth $44,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 33.4% in the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,047 shares of the company's stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 262 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.41% of the company's stock.

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.