Altria Group, Inc. $MO Shares Sold by Primecap Management Co. CA

Primecap Management Co. CA cut its holdings in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 7.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 341,800 shares of the company’s stock after selling 29,100 shares during the quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $22,579,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MO. Brighton Jones LLC grew its holdings in Altria Group by 64.7% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 17,702 shares of the company’s stock worth $926,000 after acquiring an additional 6,954 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Altria Group by 86.3% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 6,361 shares of the company’s stock worth $373,000 after purchasing an additional 2,946 shares during the last quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. lifted its position in shares of Altria Group by 6.9% during the second quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 9,630 shares of the company’s stock worth $565,000 after purchasing an additional 618 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its stake in Altria Group by 6.0% in the second quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 36,459 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,137,000 after purchasing an additional 2,049 shares in the last quarter. Finally, World Investment Advisors increased its holdings in Altria Group by 0.4% in the second quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 45,755 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,683,000 after buying an additional 193 shares during the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on MO shares. Citigroup increased their target price on Altria Group from $57.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. UBS Group upped their price target on Altria Group from $63.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Argus upgraded Altria Group to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $72.00 to $68.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on shares of Altria Group from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Altria Group has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $64.33.

Altria Group Stock Performance

MO stock opened at $68.98 on Friday. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $52.82 and a 1 year high of $70.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $115.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.78, a PEG ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.47. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $62.33 and its two-hundred day moving average is $62.57.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.32 by ($0.02). Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 287.61% and a net margin of 29.84%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.30 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 25th will be issued a dividend of $1.06 per share. This represents a $4.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 25th. Altria Group’s payout ratio is 103.16%.

Altria Group 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.