Bank of New York Mellon Corp Grows Stock Holdings in Altria Group, Inc. $MO

by · The Cerbat Gem

Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO – Free Report) by 1.0% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 12,929,142 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 133,676 shares during the quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $853,194,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 160,980,626 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,282,143,000 after acquiring an additional 1,903,530 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its position in Altria Group by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 72,830,531 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,275,886,000 after purchasing an additional 1,147,141 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Altria Group by 10.6% in 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 purchasing an additional 6,265,780 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Altria Group by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 45,984,718 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,651,383,000 after purchasing an additional 729,999 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised its position in Altria Group by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 22,306,173 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,286,174,000 after purchasing an additional 335,089 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Ellen R. Strahlman sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.56, for a total value of $145,120.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 25,102 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,821,401.12. The trade was a 7.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Ennis Debra J. Kelly sold 5,790 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $5,332,700.25. This represents a 7.27% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on MO shares. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Altria Group from $50.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Wall Street Zen lowered Altria Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, June 21st. Morgan Stanley set a $71.00 target price on Altria Group in a report on Friday, May 1st. Citigroup boosted their price target on Altria Group from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Altria Group from $68.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $70.78.

View Our Latest Research Report on Altria Group

Altria Group Price Performance

Altria Group stock opened at $73.00 on Friday. Altria Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $54.70 and a 12-month high of $74.56. The company has a market capitalization of $121.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.45. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $71.60 and its 200 day moving average price is $67.16.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $4.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.58 billion. Altria Group had a net margin of 34.34% and a negative return on equity of 298.69%. The firm’s revenue was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.23 EPS. Altria Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.560-5.72 EPS. Analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th were given a dividend of $1.06 per share. This represents a $4.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 15th. Altria Group’s payout ratio is presently 88.70%.

Altria Group Company Profile

(Free Report)

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.

Featured Stories

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MO? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO – Free Report).