TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. Reduces Stock Position in Altria Group, Inc. $MO

TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. lessened its stake in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 5.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 152,370 shares of the company’s stock after selling 9,094 shares during the period. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc.’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $8,787,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. 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 purchasing an additional 26,624 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its position in Altria Group by 1.3% in the third 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. Viking Fund Management LLC raised its stake in Altria Group by 14.1% during the fourth quarter. Viking Fund Management LLC now owns 202,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,647,000 after purchasing an additional 25,000 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in Altria Group by 7.2% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 12,073,682 shares of the company’s stock valued at $797,587,000 after purchasing an additional 814,665 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Silver Oak Securities Incorporated lifted its position in Altria Group by 155.4% during the third quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 31,220 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,062,000 after purchasing an additional 18,997 shares during the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on MO. UBS Group lifted their price target on Altria Group from $67.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Altria Group from $72.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Argus raised Altria Group to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of Altria Group from $72.00 to $68.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $65.88.

Altria Group Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of MO stock opened at $64.60 on Tuesday. Altria Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $54.70 and a 52-week high of $70.51. The stock has a market cap of $107.97 billion, a PE ratio of 15.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.41. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $66.59 and a 200-day simple moving average of $62.56.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.32 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $5.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.02 billion. Altria Group had a net margin of 29.84% and a negative return on equity of 287.61%. The company’s revenue was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.30 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 30th. Investors 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 yield of 6.6%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 25th. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 103.16%.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Charles N. Whitaker sold 27,908 shares of Altria Group stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.57, for a total value of $1,885,743.56. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

About Altria Group

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.