Orca Wealth Management LLC Invests $227,000 in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Orca Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 4,339 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $227,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its position in shares of Altria Group by 420.0% in the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 572 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 462 shares in the last quarter. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Altria Group during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Fairman Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 85.1% in the third quarter. Fairman Group LLC now owns 892 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 410 shares in the last quarter. Finally, IFS Advisors LLC increased its position in Altria Group by 330.4% in the fourth quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 977 shares of the company’s stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 750 shares during the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Altria Group Stock Down 1.7 %

Shares of NYSE:MO opened at $52.54 on Wednesday. Altria Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $39.25 and a 52-week high of $58.03. The stock has a market cap of $89.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.87, a PEG ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 0.64. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $53.88 and a 200-day moving average price of $52.26.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.03. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 233.80% and a net margin of 42.82%. The business had revenue of $6.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.33 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.28 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 26th were paid a dividend of $1.02 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 26th. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.77%. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 68.92%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently weighed in on MO. Bank of America upgraded shares of 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. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $44.50 to $48.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of Altria Group in a report on Thursday, January 16th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $54.00 price target on the stock. StockNews.com raised Altria Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on Altria Group from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Altria Group has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $53.43.

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.