Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Shares Sold by Guggenheim Capital LLC

Guggenheim Capital LLC lowered its holdings in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 4.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 198,326 shares of the company's stock after selling 8,367 shares during the quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC's holdings in Altria Group were worth $10,370,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in MO. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Redwood Park Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new position in Altria Group during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Altria Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Promus Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.41% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MO has been the topic of several research reports. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Altria Group from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. 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. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $54.00.

Altria Group Stock Down 0.6 %

NYSE MO traded down $0.34 on Monday, reaching $57.82. The company had a trading volume of 1,022,745 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,879,731. The stock has a market capitalization of $97.76 billion, a PE ratio of 8.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.54. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $56.68 and its 200 day moving average price is $54.30. Altria Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $42.02 and a 12 month high of $60.18.

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 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%. On average, research analysts expect that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 25th will be issued a dividend of $1.02 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 25th. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.06%. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.