LPL Financial LLC Boosts Stock Position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

LPL Financial LLC grew its holdings in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 4.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 2,797,042 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 120,017 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC owned approximately 0.17% of Altria Group worth $142,761,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in MO. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Altria Group during the second quarter valued at $27,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC bought a new position in Altria Group in the 2nd quarter worth about $30,000. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. grew its position in Altria Group by 63.9% during the 2nd quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 667 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 260 shares during the last quarter. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in Altria Group during the 3rd quarter valued at about $41,000. Finally, Lynx Investment Advisory purchased a new position in Altria Group in the second quarter worth about $44,000. 57.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Altria Group stock opened at $56.74 on Friday. Altria Group, Inc. has a one year low of $39.25 and a one year high of $56.84. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $51.87 and a 200 day moving average of $49.65. The stock has a market cap of $96.16 billion, a PE ratio of 9.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 0.64.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.38 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $6.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.33 billion. Altria Group had a net margin of 42.82% and a negative return on equity of 233.80%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 18.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.28 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target 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. Citigroup lifted their target price on Altria Group from $44.50 to $48.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Bank of America lowered their price target on Altria Group from $57.00 to $53.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Altria Group from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on shares of Altria Group from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Altria Group presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $51.33.

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.