Altria Group (NYSE:MO) Shares Up 1% - Still a Buy?

Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report)'s stock price rose 1% on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $58.19 and last traded at $58.09. Approximately 1,587,628 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 84% from the average daily volume of 9,681,152 shares. The stock had previously closed at $57.52.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Altria Group from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered 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. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Altria Group has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $54.00.

Altria Group Trading Up 1.5 %

The stock has a 50 day moving average of $56.68 and a 200-day moving average of $54.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $98.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.54.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The company reported $1.29 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 EPS for the current year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 25th will be paid a $1.02 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 25th. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.02%. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 62.29%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Altria Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Virtu Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $2,041,000. Wealthquest Corp bought a new stake in Altria Group during the 3rd quarter valued at $209,000. Chelsea Counsel Co. raised its position in shares of Altria Group by 7.8% in the 3rd quarter. Chelsea Counsel Co. now owns 20,300 shares of the company's stock worth $1,056,000 after acquiring an additional 1,465 shares in the last quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 35.9% during the 3rd quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 13,174 shares of the company's stock worth $672,000 after purchasing an additional 3,478 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. grew its position in shares of Altria Group by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. now owns 82,445 shares of the company's stock worth $4,208,000 after buying an additional 730 shares during the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.