Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Has $636,000 Stake in Vector Group Ltd. (NYSE:VGR)

Posted by Defense World Staff on Jul 8th, 2023

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System decreased its position in Vector Group Ltd. (NYSE:VGR – Free Report) by 2.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 52,987 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,411 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Vector Group were worth $636,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VGR. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. boosted its stake in Vector Group by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. now owns 20,149 shares of the company’s stock worth $222,000 after purchasing an additional 884 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its stake in Vector Group by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,882,313 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,704,000 after purchasing an additional 17,549 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Vector Group by 7.0% during the 1st quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 117,311 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,412,000 after buying an additional 7,672 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors L.P. boosted its stake in shares of Vector Group by 8.6% during the 1st quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. now owns 34,809 shares of the company’s stock valued at $419,000 after buying an additional 2,756 shares during the period. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Vector Group by 66.4% during the 1st quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 75,551 shares of the company’s stock valued at $910,000 after buying an additional 30,139 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 63.28% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Vector Group in a research note on Thursday, May 18th. They set a “buy” rating for the company.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Bennett S. Lebow sold 80,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.93, for a total transaction of $1,034,400.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 267,304 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,456,240.72. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 7.14% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Vector Group Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:VGR opened at $12.92 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $12.28 and a two-hundred day moving average of $12.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.67 and a beta of 1.05. Vector Group Ltd. has a 12-month low of $8.64 and a 12-month high of $14.39.

Vector Group (NYSE:VGR – Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 8th. The company reported $0.22 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $334.15 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $334.00 million. Vector Group had a net margin of 11.00% and a negative return on equity of 19.68%. Equities research analysts expect that Vector Group Ltd. will post 1.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vector Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 29th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 20th were issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 16th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.19%. Vector Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 78.43%.

About Vector Group

(Free Report)

Vector Group Ltd., through its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells cigarettes in the United States. It operates in two segments, Tobacco and Real Estate. The company produces cigarettes under the EAGLE 20's, Pyramid, Montego, Grand Prix, Liggett Select, Eve, and USA brand names, as well as various partner and private label brands.