Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Holdings Boosted by CenterBook Partners LP

CenterBook Partners LP boosted its holdings in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 135.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 29,971 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 17,215 shares during the period. CenterBook Partners LP's holdings in Altria Group were worth $1,567,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Altria Group during the fourth quarter worth about $137,536,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Altria Group by 4.0% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 59,805,286 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,127,218,000 after purchasing an additional 2,296,972 shares during the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas raised its position in Altria Group by 136.4% in the fourth quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 2,022,121 shares of the company's stock valued at $105,737,000 after purchasing an additional 1,166,701 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Altria Group by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 41,938,507 shares of the company's stock worth $2,193,687,000 after purchasing an additional 1,134,748 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Prudential Financial Inc. boosted its position in shares of Altria Group by 49.3% during the fourth quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 3,317,662 shares of the company's stock worth $173,481,000 after buying an additional 1,096,205 shares during the period. 57.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on MO. UBS Group lifted their target price on 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 shares of Altria Group in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced 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 report on Friday, January 31st. Two equities research 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 data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $54.00.

Altria Group Stock Performance

NYSE:MO traded up $0.61 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $57.74. 2,244,275 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 9,736,785. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $56.31 and its 200 day simple moving average is $54.10. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $40.72 and a 1 year high of $60.18. The company has a market cap of $97.62 billion, a PE ratio of 8.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.54.

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

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 25th. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.07%. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.29%.

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.