Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) Shares Acquired by Checchi Capital Advisers LLC

Checchi Capital Advisers LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 4.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 15,289 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 604 shares during the quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $799,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. National Pension Service raised its stake in shares of Altria Group by 4.9% during the 4th quarter. National Pension Service now owns 4,232,359 shares of the company’s stock worth $221,310,000 after buying an additional 197,945 shares during the period. Advisor OS LLC increased its position in shares of Altria Group by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Advisor OS LLC now owns 10,400 shares of the company’s stock worth $544,000 after purchasing an additional 264 shares in the last quarter. Denali Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $3,849,000. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC increased its position in shares of Altria Group by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 11,167 shares of the company’s stock worth $595,000 after purchasing an additional 292 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sterling Investment Advisors Ltd. increased its position in shares of Altria Group by 54.2% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Investment Advisors Ltd. now owns 6,630 shares of the company’s stock worth $347,000 after purchasing an additional 2,329 shares in the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MO has been the subject of several research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on Altria Group from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Bank of America upgraded Altria Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $55.00 to $65.00 in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Altria Group from $54.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Barclays upped their target price on Altria Group from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Altria Group from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $53.29.

Altria Group Price Performance

Shares of MO stock opened at $54.86 on Thursday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $52.69 and its two-hundred day moving average is $52.83. Altria Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $39.25 and a 12 month high of $58.03. The company has a market capitalization of $92.98 billion, a PE ratio of 8.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.64.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The company reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.01. Altria Group had a net margin of 46.90% and a negative return on equity of 258.72%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 26th were paid a $1.02 dividend. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.44%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 26th. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 62.29%.

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.