Carnegie Capital Asset Management LLC Sells 9,856 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Carnegie Capital Asset Management LLC reduced its position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 18.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 43,841 shares of the company’s stock after selling 9,856 shares during the quarter. Carnegie Capital Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $1,769,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of MO. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P bought a new position in Altria Group in the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new stake in Altria Group during the third quarter valued at $26,000. Nemes Rush Group LLC grew its position in Altria Group by 103.2% during the third quarter. Nemes Rush Group LLC now owns 636 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 323 shares in the last quarter. ZRC Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Altria Group by 67.6% during the fourth quarter. ZRC Wealth Management LLC now owns 677 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 273 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legacy Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Altria Group in the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Altria Group Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of Altria Group stock opened at $40.95 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.34 billion, a PE ratio of 8.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 0.65. Altria Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $39.06 and a 12 month high of $48.04. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $41.83 and its 200-day moving average price is $41.44.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The company reported $1.18 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.17 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $5.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.06 billion. Altria Group had a net margin of 33.21% and a negative return on equity of 244.55%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.18 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, February 1st that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 1.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 25th will be paid a dividend of $0.98 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 22nd. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 9.57%. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 85.78%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com downgraded Altria Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Altria Group from $36.10 to $36.50 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $50.00 price target on shares of Altria Group in a report on Monday, March 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $46.90.

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.