Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Shares Acquired by QRG Capital Management Inc.

QRG Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 64.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 643,804 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 252,292 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in Altria Group were worth $32,860,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. BNP Paribas acquired a new stake in Altria Group in the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the 2nd quarter worth $27,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group during the second quarter worth $30,000. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. increased its holdings in Altria Group by 63.9% in the second quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 667 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 260 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lynx Investment Advisory purchased a new position in Altria Group in the second quarter valued at $44,000. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Altria Group Stock Up 0.0 %

NYSE:MO traded up $0.01 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $53.88. 7,670,370 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,897,328. The firm has a market capitalization of $91.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.10, a P/E/G ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 0.64. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $39.25 and a 1-year high of $54.95. The company has a 50-day moving average of $51.44 and a 200 day moving average of $48.57.

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

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 10th. Investors of record on Monday, September 16th were issued a dividend of $1.02 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 16th. This is an increase from Altria Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.98. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.57%. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 68.92%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MO has been the subject of several analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Altria Group from $54.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on Altria Group from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday. Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $57.00 to $53.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Altria Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Altria Group from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $51.17.

About Altria Group

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.