Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Sells 4,900 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System cut its holdings in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 5.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 91,200 shares of the company's stock after selling 4,900 shares during the quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System's holdings in Altria Group were worth $4,769,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in shares of Altria Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its position in shares of Altria Group by 420.0% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 572 shares of the company's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 462 shares in the last quarter. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $41,000. Finally, Fairman Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Altria Group by 85.1% during the 3rd quarter. Fairman Group LLC now owns 892 shares of the company's stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 410 shares in the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Altria Group Price Performance

NYSE MO traded down $0.26 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $53.37. 4,563,210 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,840,942. Altria Group, Inc. has a one year low of $39.25 and a one year high of $58.03. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $52.75 and a 200-day simple moving average of $52.59. The stock has a market cap of $90.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.15, a P/E/G ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.64.

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Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last announced 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 net margin of 46.90% and a negative return on equity of 258.72%. 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 was paid on Friday, January 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 26th were paid a dividend of $1.02 per share. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.65%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 26th. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 62.29%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MO has been the topic of several analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Altria Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Altria Group from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Altria Group from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Altria Group from $54.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on shares of Altria Group from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Altria Group presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $53.29.

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.