Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Shares Bought by PNC Financial Services Group Inc.

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,922,740 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 45,253 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. owned 0.11% of Altria Group worth $98,137,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MO. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Altria Group during the second quarter worth about $27,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Altria Group during the second quarter worth $30,000. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. raised its position in Altria Group by 63.9% in the second quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 667 shares of the company's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 260 shares in the last quarter. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Altria Group in the third quarter valued at $41,000. Finally, Lynx Investment Advisory purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the 2nd quarter worth $44,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.41% of the company's stock.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Altria Group stock traded up $0.12 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $55.98. 5,715,649 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,743,754. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $51.72 and its 200-day simple moving average is $49.51. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $39.25 and a 1 year high of $56.55. The company has a market capitalization of $94.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.46, a P/E/G ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 0.64.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last announced its 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 net margin of 42.82% and a negative return on equity of 233.80%. Altria Group's revenue was up 18.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.28 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th were paid a dividend of $1.02 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 16th. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.29%. This is an increase from Altria Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.98. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 68.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MO has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $57.00 to $53.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. StockNews.com upgraded Altria Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Altria Group from $44.50 to $48.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Barclays boosted their target price on Altria Group from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on Altria Group from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Altria Group has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $51.33.

Altria Group Company 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.