Analysts Set Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Target Price at $65.11

Shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the twelve analysts that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $65.1111.

Several brokerages have issued reports on MO. UBS Group raised their target price on Altria Group from $67.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $57.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Altria Group from $47.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on shares of Altria Group from $72.00 to $68.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 30th.

Altria Group Trading Down 0.9%

Shares of MO opened at $64.46 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $107.77 billion, a PE ratio of 15.68, a P/E/G ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.45. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $65.21 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $62.61. Altria Group has a 1-year low of $52.82 and a 1-year high of $70.51.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $1.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.32 by ($0.02). Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 287.61% and a net margin of 29.84%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.30 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Altria Group will post 5.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 25th will be given a dividend of $1.06 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 25th. This represents a $4.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.6%. Altria Group’s payout ratio is presently 103.16%.

Insider Activity at Altria Group

In related news, SVP Charles N. Whitaker sold 27,908 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.57, for a total value of $1,885,743.56. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 180,869 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,221,318.33. This trade represents a 13.37% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.08% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Altria Group

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MO. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its holdings in Altria Group by 62.5% in the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 16,395,070 shares of the company’s stock worth $954,446,000 after acquiring an additional 6,302,819 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Altria Group by 10.6% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 65,516,916 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,777,931,000 after purchasing an additional 6,265,780 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its holdings in Altria Group by 286.7% during the third quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 4,479,699 shares of the company’s stock valued at $295,929,000 after purchasing an additional 3,321,262 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its position in shares of Altria Group by 438.6% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 3,637,678 shares of the company’s stock worth $209,749,000 after purchasing an additional 2,962,270 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Altria Group by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 160,980,626 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,282,143,000 after purchasing an additional 1,903,530 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Altria Group Company Profile

Altria Group, Inc (NYSE: MO) is a U.S.-based consumer goods company whose principal business is the manufacture and sale of tobacco products. Headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, the company’s operations are focused primarily on the U.S. market and include the production, marketing and distribution of cigarettes, smokeless tobacco and cigars. Its flagship cigarette franchise in the United States is sold through its operating subsidiaries and is among the most recognizable cigarette brands in the country.

Altria’s principal operating businesses include Philip Morris USA (cigarettes), U.S.