F M Investments LLC Acquires 4,421 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

F M Investments LLC grew its position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 19.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 27,691 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 4,421 shares during the quarter. F M Investments LLC's holdings in Altria Group were worth $1,448,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in Altria Group by 2.2% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,159,890 shares of the company's stock valued at $107,679,000 after purchasing an additional 46,697 shares in the last quarter. Czech National Bank boosted its position in shares of Altria Group by 5.7% during the 4th quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 367,469 shares of the company's stock worth $19,215,000 after acquiring an additional 19,893 shares in the last quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC increased its stake in Altria Group by 5.3% in the fourth quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 240,454 shares of the company's stock valued at $12,573,000 after acquiring an additional 12,011 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB boosted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 48.8% in the 3rd quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 89,761 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,581,000 after purchasing an additional 29,421 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Csenge Advisory Group increased its stake in shares of Altria Group by 29.1% in the 4th quarter. Csenge Advisory Group now owns 54,684 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,859,000 after purchasing an additional 12,320 shares during the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MO has been the topic of a number of research reports. Morgan Stanley decreased 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 note on Friday, January 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $60.00 price target on Altria Group in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, 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 report on Tuesday, April 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Altria Group presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $54.00.

Altria Group Price Performance

NYSE MO traded up $0.49 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $58.01. 2,940,986 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,984,226. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $56.41 and a 200-day simple moving average of $54.13. Altria Group, Inc. has a one year low of $40.72 and a one year high of $60.18. The stock has a market cap of $98.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.86, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.54.

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

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 25th will be given a $1.02 dividend. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.03%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 25th. Altria Group's payout ratio is 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.