Intech Investment Management LLC Acquires 24,598 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Intech Investment Management LLC raised its position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 5.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 502,600 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 24,598 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $22,893,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MO. Maryland Capital Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Altria Group by 154.4% during the 1st quarter. Maryland Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 575 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 349 shares during the last quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. BNP Paribas purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Westend Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the 1st quarter worth approximately $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Altria Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MO opened at $50.23 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $51.22 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $46.69. Altria Group, Inc. has a one year low of $39.06 and a one year high of $54.95. The company has a market cap of $86.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.51, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.65.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $1.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by ($0.04). Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 232.55% and a net margin of 42.25%. The company had revenue of $6.21 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.39 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.31 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 14.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be paid a $1.02 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 16th. This is an increase from Altria Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.98. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 8.12%. Altria Group’s payout ratio is currently 85.36%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on MO shares. UBS Group raised their price target 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. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $52.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 9th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Altria Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, June 28th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Altria Group has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $49.67.

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.