Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Holdings Boosted by Patten Group Inc.

Patten Group Inc. raised its position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 4.8% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 4,608 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 213 shares during the quarter. Patten Group Inc.’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $241,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in MO. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. True Wealth Design LLC increased its stake in shares of Altria Group by 420.0% in the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 572 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 462 shares during the period. Marshall Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Bank of America upgraded shares of Altria Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $55.00 to $65.00 in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Altria Group from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $53.29.

Altria Group Price Performance

NYSE MO opened at $56.35 on Wednesday. Altria Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $39.72 and a 12 month high of $58.59. The firm has a market capitalization of $95.28 billion, a PE ratio of 8.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.64. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $52.90 and its 200 day simple moving average is $52.99.

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

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 25th will be issued a dividend of $1.02 per share. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 25th. Altria Group’s payout ratio is 62.29%.

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.