Employees Retirement System of Texas Sells 44,940 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Employees Retirement System of Texas trimmed its holdings in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 14.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 270,562 shares of the company’s stock after selling 44,940 shares during the period. Employees Retirement System of Texas’ holdings in Altria Group were worth $17,873,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Altria Group by 1.0% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 159,717,148 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,364,216,000 after purchasing an additional 1,599,923 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Altria Group by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 72,367,263 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,315,438,000 after buying an additional 886,583 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its stake in Altria Group by 62.5% in the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 16,395,070 shares of the company’s stock valued at $954,446,000 after buying an additional 6,302,819 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in Altria Group by 1.1% in the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 12,747,828 shares of the company’s stock valued at $842,122,000 after acquiring an additional 132,846 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors raised its stake in Altria Group by 0.4% during the third quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 12,131,644 shares of the company’s stock worth $801,412,000 after acquiring an additional 47,757 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Altria Group Stock Up 1.9%

MO stock opened at $67.63 on Friday. Altria Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $52.82 and a twelve month high of $70.51. The company has a market cap of $113.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.45. The business’s fifty day moving average is $64.00 and its 200-day moving average is $62.63.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 company posted $1.30 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on MO shares. Barclays boosted their target price 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 upped their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $57.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Argus upgraded shares of Altria Group to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. UBS Group increased 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. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Altria Group from $47.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Altria Group has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $65.11.

Insider Buying and Selling at Altria Group

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

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.