A portfolio of stocks I started and named Volio Folio, September 3, holds 52 dividend dogs. Volio is the fifth portfolio I've built (at a one dividend dog per-week pace) since 2014. Five portfolios = V for Volio!

I'm reviewing today the first of five consumer defensive sector stocks striving to be picked to join the Volio folio collection. This would be the fourth pick for Volio!

This consumer defensive sector includes thirteen industries all related to providing conveniently packaged goods we've just gotta have. Industries like: beverages, brewed, soft, or distilled; confections; discount stores; education & training; farm products; food distribution; grocery stores; household & personal products; packaged goods; pharmaceutical retailers; tobacco.

My subject today is a large-cap tobacco company named Altria Group Inc.. Their trading ticker symbol is MO. I last reported on Altria February 6, 2019 for my Ivy portfolio.

Altria comprises Philip Morris USA, U.S. Smokeless Tobacco, John Middleton, Ste. Michelle Wine Estates, Nu Mark, and Philip Morris Capital.

It also holds a 10.2% interest in the world's largest brewer, Anheuser-Busch InBev.

Through its tobacco subsidiaries, Altria holds the leading position in cigarettes and smokeless tobacco in the United States and the number-two spot in machine-made cigars. The company's Marlboro brand is the leading cigarette brand in the U.S. with a 40% share.

I use three key data points to gauge dividend-paying equities or funds like Altria Group Inc. (MO):

(1) Price

(2) Dividends

(3) Returns

Besides those three, several other keys will finally unlock an equity or fund in which to invest, or not.

Those three basic keys, however, best tell whether a company has made, is making, and will make money.

MO Price

Altria's price per share closed at $40.81 yesterday. A year ago its price was $61.06. In a year its price dropped $20.25 or 33.2%.

Assuming Altria's stock trades in the range of $36 to $56.00 this next year, Altria's recent $40.81 price could rise by $9.19 and get to $50.00 by late September, 2020. If the past year momentum reverses.

MO Dividends

Altria's latest declared quarterly dividend was $0.84 payable October 10th.

That $0.84 Q payout added to the previous three equates to $3.36 annually and yields8.23% based on Friday's $40.81 closing price.

GNTX Gains?

Adding the $3.36 annual estimated dividend to my $9.19 estimate of Altria's price upside shows a $12.55 potential gross gain, per share, which will be reduced by costs to trade these shares.

Say we put a little over $1,000.00 today into Altria Group Inc. at its $40.81 recent stock price, we'd buy 25 shares of Altria Group Inc. (MO) shares.

A $10 broker fee paid half at purchase and half at sale will cost us $0.40 per share.

Subtract that $0.40 brokerage cost from the estimated $12.55 gross estimated gain leaves a net gain of $12.15 X 25 shares = $303.75 or a 30.35% net gain on a $1,020.25 investment.

Therefore, Altria Group Inc., whose trading ticker symbol is MO now shows a possible net gain of 30.35% including an 8.23% dividend yield. It could be more, it could be much less.

The above speculation is based on past year performance. The actual results remain to be seen to learn if Altria Group Inc. (MO) is worth your time and money.