Susquehanna Portfolio Strategies LLC Sells 14,918 Shares of Vector Group Ltd. (NYSE:VGR)

Susquehanna Portfolio Strategies LLC decreased its position in Vector Group Ltd. (NYSE:VGR) by 37.3% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 25,043 shares of the company’s stock after selling 14,918 shares during the quarter. Susquehanna Portfolio Strategies LLC’s holdings in Vector Group were worth $265,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board bought a new position in shares of Vector Group in the 2nd quarter worth about $59,000. ORG Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Vector Group by 252.3% during the second quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 6,039 shares of the company’s stock valued at $66,000 after purchasing an additional 4,325 shares in the last quarter. Somerset Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of Vector Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $110,000. SpiderRock Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vector Group in the 1st quarter worth approximately $112,000. Finally, Rothschild Investment LLC bought a new position in Vector Group during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $116,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.09% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VGR has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Vector Group from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Vector Group in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock.

Vector Group Stock Performance

NYSE:VGR opened at $14.91 on Monday. Vector Group Ltd. has a 52-week low of $9.27 and a 52-week high of $15.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.35 billion, a PE ratio of 12.85 and a beta of 1.04. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $14.15 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $11.92.

Vector Group (NYSE:VGR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.30 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $371.91 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $362.90 million. Vector Group had a negative return on equity of 26.96% and a net margin of 14.05%. Equities analysts forecast that Vector Group Ltd. will post 1.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vector Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 30th were issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 30th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.37%. Vector Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 68.97%.

Vector Group Company Profile

Vector Group Ltd., through its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of cigarettes in the United States. It operates in two segments, Tobacco and Real Estate. The company produces cigarettes under the Montego, EAGLE 20’s, Pyramid, Grand Prix, Liggett Select, Eve, and USA brand names, as well as various partner and private label brands.