Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Sells 12,079 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio lowered its holdings in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 1.4% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 881,793 shares of the company's stock after selling 12,079 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio owned about 0.05% of Altria Group worth $45,007,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. True Wealth Design LLC raised its stake in Altria Group by 420.0% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 572 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 462 shares in the last quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Altria Group during the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Valley Wealth Managers Inc. raised its position in shares of Altria Group by 63.9% during the 2nd quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 667 shares of the company's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 260 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.41% of the company's stock.

Altria Group Stock Down 2.5 %

Shares of NYSE:MO traded down $1.46 on Monday, reaching $55.86. The company had a trading volume of 5,036,578 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,594,732. Altria Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $39.25 and a twelve month high of $58.03. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $53.14 and a 200 day moving average price of $50.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $94.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.68, a P/E/G ratio of 3.26 and a beta of 0.63.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.03. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 233.80% and a net margin of 42.82%. The company had revenue of $6.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.33 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.28 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 18.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MO has been the topic of a number of research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on Altria Group from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. StockNews.com upgraded Altria Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Barclays raised their target price on Altria Group from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. UBS Group raised their target price on Altria Group from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on Altria Group from $44.50 to $48.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Altria Group presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $53.33.

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.