Independence Bank of Kentucky Buys 325 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Independence Bank of Kentucky boosted its stake in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 0.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 42,989 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 325 shares during the period. Independence Bank of Kentucky’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $1,875,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Maryland Capital Advisors Inc. raised its position in Altria Group by 154.4% during the first quarter. Maryland Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 575 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 349 shares in the last quarter. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. ZRC Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Altria Group by 67.6% during the 4th quarter. ZRC Wealth Management LLC now owns 677 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 273 shares during the last quarter. Pineridge Advisors LLC bought a new position in Altria Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Westend Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Altria Group during the first quarter worth about $29,000. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on MO shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Altria Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Altria Group from $36.10 to $36.50 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Stifel Nicolaus reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $50.00 price target on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Monday, March 25th. Finally, Argus raised Altria Group to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Altria Group presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $46.90.

Insider Transactions at Altria Group

In other news, VP Charles N. Whitaker sold 22,487 shares of Altria Group stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.95, for a total value of $988,303.65. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 173,485 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,624,665.75. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Altria Group Price Performance

Shares of Altria Group stock traded up $0.09 during trading on Friday, hitting $45.55. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 12,238,540 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,876,758. The stock has a market cap of $78.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.64. Altria Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $39.06 and a 52 week high of $47.19. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $45.19 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $42.74.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $1.15 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.15. The company had revenue of $4.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.71 billion. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 222.80% and a net margin of 34.81%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.18 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be given a $0.98 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 14th. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.61%. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 82.01%.

Altria Group 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.