Altria Group (NYSE:MO) Shares Down 1.2% – Time to Sell?
by Jessica Moore · The Cerbat GemAltria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO – Get Free Report) dropped 1.2% on Thursday . The company traded as low as $67.50 and last traded at $67.6410. 10,370,118 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 11% from the average daily volume of 9,337,322 shares. The stock had previously closed at $68.44.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
A number of analysts have recently issued reports on MO shares. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Altria Group from $68.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. BTIG Research started coverage on Altria Group in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Morgan Stanley set a $71.00 price target on Altria Group in a report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on Altria Group from $76.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Altria Group presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $70.78.
Get Our Latest Report on Altria Group
Altria Group Trading Up 0.9%
The firm has a market cap of $114.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.46. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $71.34 and its 200 day moving average is $68.56.
Altria Group (NYSE:MO – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.48 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.50 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $5.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.35 billion. Altria Group had a net margin of 33.99% and a negative return on equity of 315.29%. The firm’s revenue was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.44 earnings per share. Altria Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.610-5.720 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.68 EPS for the current year.
Altria Group Dividend Announcement
The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 10th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th were issued a dividend of $1.06 per share. This represents a $4.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 15th. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 89.45%.
Insider Buying and Selling at Altria Group
In related news, Director Ellen R. Strahlman sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.56, for a total value of $145,120.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 25,102 shares in the company, valued at $1,821,401.12. The trade was a 7.38% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Ennis Debra J. Kelly sold 5,790 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.25, for a total value of $418,327.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 73,809 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,332,700.25. This represents a 7.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.
Hedge Funds Weigh In On Altria Group
Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of MO. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Altria Group by 10.6% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 65,516,916 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,777,931,000 after acquiring an additional 6,265,780 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its position in shares of Altria Group by 3,691.2% in the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 3,606,561 shares of the company’s stock worth $259,492,000 after purchasing an additional 3,511,430 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP increased its position in shares of Altria Group by 286.7% in the third quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 4,479,699 shares of the company’s stock worth $295,929,000 after purchasing an additional 3,321,262 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Altria Group by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 160,980,626 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,282,143,000 after purchasing an additional 1,903,530 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia raised its stake in Altria Group by 301.4% in the fourth quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 2,416,142 shares of the company’s stock valued at $139,315,000 after purchasing an additional 1,814,224 shares in the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
About Altria Group
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.