Altria Group, Inc. $MO Shares Purchased by Cibc World Market Inc.

Cibc World Market Inc. increased its stake in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 62.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 553,105 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 212,229 shares during the period. Cibc World Market Inc.’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $36,538,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MO. CWA Asset Management Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 8.6% in the third quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 335,418 shares of the company’s stock worth $22,158,000 after buying an additional 26,624 shares during the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. lifted its position in Altria Group by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 3,522,209 shares of the company’s stock worth $232,677,000 after acquiring an additional 44,303 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Altria Group by 1.0% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 159,717,148 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,364,216,000 after acquiring an additional 1,599,923 shares during the period. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated grew its position in shares of Altria Group by 155.4% in 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. Finally, VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al bought a new position in shares of Altria Group in the second quarter worth about $126,471,000. Institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Shares of Altria Group stock opened at $65.92 on Thursday. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $60.06 and its 200-day simple moving average is $62.08. Altria Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $52.40 and a twelve month high of $68.60. The firm has a market cap of $110.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 0.47.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last posted 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 analyst estimates of $5.02 billion. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 287.61% and a net margin of 29.84%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.30 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Thursday, October 30th that permits the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to buy up to 1.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 26th were given a $1.06 dividend. This represents a $4.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.4%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 26th. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio is 103.16%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MO has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on Altria Group from $72.00 to $68.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Argus upgraded shares of Altria Group to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Altria Group from $63.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. 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. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $63.67.

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.