Altria Group (NYSE:MO) Given New $50.00 Price Target at Jefferies Financial Group

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) had its price target raised by stock analysts at Jefferies Financial Group from $47.00 to $50.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,MarketScreener reports. The firm currently has an “underperform” rating on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group’s price objective points to a potential downside of 24.79% from the company’s current price.

MO has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Stifel Nicolaus cut 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 report on Friday, January 30th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Altria Group from $63.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Altria Group from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Altria Group from $57.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Finally, Argus upgraded shares of Altria Group to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Five investment 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’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $64.33.

Altria Group Stock Performance

NYSE:MO opened at $66.48 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $63.25 and a 200 day simple moving average of $62.64. Altria Group has a 52-week low of $52.82 and a 52-week high of $70.51. The company has a market cap of $111.15 billion, a PE ratio of 16.18, a PEG ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.45.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last released its 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 net margin of 29.84% and a negative return on equity of 287.61%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.30 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Altria Group will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Altria Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 6,954 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in Altria Group by 86.3% in the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 6,361 shares of the company’s stock valued at $373,000 after purchasing an additional 2,946 shares during the last quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. grew its holdings in 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 period. Savant Capital LLC grew its holdings in Altria Group by 8.0% during the second quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 111,061 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,511,000 after purchasing an additional 8,273 shares during the period. Finally, Walkner Condon Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in Altria Group by 4.8% during the second quarter. Walkner Condon Financial Advisors LLC now owns 4,941 shares of the company’s stock worth $290,000 after buying an additional 228 shares during the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.