Main Street Financial Solutions LLC Sells 1,730 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO)

Main Street Financial Solutions LLC cut its stake in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 15.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,329 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,730 shares during the quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $488,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $2,041,000. Wealthquest Corp bought a new stake in Altria Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $209,000. Chelsea Counsel Co. increased its position in Altria Group by 7.8% in the 3rd quarter. Chelsea Counsel Co. now owns 20,300 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,056,000 after acquiring an additional 1,465 shares during the period. Anchor Investment Management LLC increased its position in Altria Group by 35.9% in the 3rd quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 13,174 shares of the company’s stock valued at $672,000 after acquiring an additional 3,478 shares during the period. Finally, Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. raised its stake in shares of Altria Group by 0.9% during the third quarter. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. now owns 82,445 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,208,000 after acquiring an additional 730 shares during the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MO has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective 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. UBS Group upped their price target on Altria Group from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $60.00 price objective on Altria Group in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $54.00.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Shares of MO opened at $58.13 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $98.27 billion, a PE ratio of 8.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.54. Altria Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $41.11 and a 52-week high of $60.18. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $56.59 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $54.20.

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

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 25th will be issued a $1.02 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 25th. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.02%. Altria Group’s payout ratio is currently 62.29%.

About Altria Group

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.