Pure Financial Advisors LLC Boosts Stake in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Pure Financial Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 115.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 35,854 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 19,202 shares during the period. Pure Financial Advisors LLC's holdings in Altria Group were worth $1,875,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in Altria Group by 163.6% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 50,862 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,317,000 after acquiring an additional 31,568 shares during the last quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 6.4% during the 2nd quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 47,414 shares of the company's stock worth $2,160,000 after purchasing an additional 2,848 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. grew its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 4.1% during the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 1,097,005 shares of the company's stock worth $49,969,000 after purchasing an additional 42,904 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Altria Group by 5.9% during the 2nd quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 234,267 shares of the company's stock worth $10,671,000 after purchasing an additional 13,086 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fidelis Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in Altria Group by 66.5% in the 2nd quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 15,424 shares of the company's stock valued at $772,000 after buying an additional 6,162 shares during the period. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Altria Group Stock Down 0.8 %

NYSE MO traded down $0.39 on Tuesday, hitting $51.47. 8,188,640 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,758,680. Altria Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $39.25 and a fifty-two week high of $58.03. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $54.25 and a 200-day moving average price of $52.07. The company has a market cap of $87.23 billion, a PE ratio of 8.69, a PEG ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.64.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.03. The business 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 quarterly revenue was up 18.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.28 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.13 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. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 26th were issued a $1.02 dividend. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.93%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 26th. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 68.92%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Altria Group from $54.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Barclays raised their target price on Altria Group from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $54.00 price target on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Altria Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Altria Group from $44.50 to $48.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Altria Group presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $53.43.

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.