Intech Investment Management LLC Cuts Holdings in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Intech Investment Management LLC decreased its position in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 5.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 476,248 shares of the company’s stock after selling 26,352 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $24,308,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Altria Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Altria Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $30,000. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 63.9% in the 2nd quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 667 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 260 shares during the last quarter. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Altria Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $41,000. Finally, Lynx Investment Advisory bought a new position in shares of Altria Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $44,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Altria Group Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of MO stock opened at $55.98 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $94.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.46, a PEG ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 0.64. The company’s 50 day moving average is $51.72 and its 200 day moving average is $49.51. Altria Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $39.25 and a 52-week high of $56.55.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.03. Altria Group had a net margin of 42.82% and a negative return on equity of 233.80%. The business had revenue of $6.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.33 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.28 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently commented on MO shares. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Altria Group from $44.50 to $48.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $54.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. StockNews.com raised shares of Altria Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $51.33.

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.