WESPAC Advisors LLC Sells 11,404 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. $MO

WESPAC Advisors LLC trimmed its position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 76.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,508 shares of the company’s stock after selling 11,404 shares during the quarter. WESPAC Advisors LLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $202,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MO. CWA Asset Management Group LLC raised its position in shares of Altria Group by 8.6% during the 3rd quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 335,418 shares of the company’s stock valued at $22,158,000 after acquiring an additional 26,624 shares during the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Altria Group by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 3,522,209 shares of the company’s stock worth $232,677,000 after purchasing an additional 44,303 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in shares of Altria Group by 7.2% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 12,073,682 shares of the company’s stock worth $797,587,000 after purchasing an additional 814,665 shares during the last quarter. Viking Fund Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Altria Group by 14.1% during the fourth quarter. Viking Fund Management LLC now owns 202,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,647,000 after purchasing an additional 25,000 shares during the period. Finally, Silver Oak Securities Incorporated grew its stake in shares of Altria Group by 155.4% during the third quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 31,220 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,062,000 after purchasing an additional 18,997 shares during the period. 57.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Altria Group news, SVP Charles N. Whitaker sold 27,908 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.57, for a total transaction of $1,885,743.56. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 180,869 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,221,318.33. This trade represents a 13.37% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.

Altria Group Trading Up 0.7%

MO stock opened at $66.97 on Tuesday. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $52.82 and a 1-year high of $70.51. The firm has a market cap of $111.97 billion, a PE ratio of 16.30, a P/E/G ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.45. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $65.71 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $62.49.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $1.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.32 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $5.08 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.02 billion. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 287.61% and a net margin of 29.84%.The firm’s revenue was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.30 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 30th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 25th will be paid a dividend of $1.06 per share. This represents a $4.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 25th. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 103.16%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have weighed in on MO shares. UBS Group increased their target price on Altria Group from $67.00 to $74.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Argus raised Altria Group to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $72.00 to $68.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $47.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Altria Group from $57.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $65.11.

Altria Group Company Profile

Altria Group, Inc (NYSE: MO) is a U.S.-based consumer goods company whose principal business is the manufacture and sale of tobacco products. Headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, the company’s operations are focused primarily on the U.S. market and include the production, marketing and distribution of cigarettes, smokeless tobacco and cigars. Its flagship cigarette franchise in the United States is sold through its operating subsidiaries and is among the most recognizable cigarette brands in the country.

Altria’s principal operating businesses include Philip Morris USA (cigarettes), U.S.