Stifel Financial Corp Raises Stock Holdings in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Stifel Financial Corp lifted its position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 3.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,452,188 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 41,930 shares during the quarter. Stifel Financial Corp owned about 0.09% of Altria Group worth $75,934,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MO. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury raised its position in shares of Altria Group by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury now owns 601,409 shares of the company's stock valued at $31,448,000 after buying an additional 18,058 shares in the last quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. raised its position in Altria Group by 42.5% during the fourth quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 198,351 shares of the company's stock valued at $10,378,000 after purchasing an additional 59,166 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its position in Altria Group by 47.6% during the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 111,544 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,833,000 after purchasing an additional 35,983 shares during the period. Tradition Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. Tradition Wealth Management LLC now owns 14,494 shares of the company's stock valued at $758,000 after purchasing an additional 701 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Transce3nd LLC purchased a new position in shares of Altria Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $45,000. 57.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MO has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Altria Group in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Altria Group presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $54.00.

Altria Group Price Performance

MO stock traded up $0.16 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $58.72. The company had a trading volume of 6,051,518 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,829,238. The company has a market capitalization of $99.28 billion, a PE ratio of 8.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.54. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $57.08 and a 200 day moving average of $54.48. Altria Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $42.76 and a 12 month high of $60.18.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The company reported $1.29 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.01. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 258.72% and a net margin of 46.90%. Analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 25th will be given a $1.02 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 25th. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.95%. Altria Group's payout ratio is presently 62.29%.

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.