Atria Investments Inc Increases Holdings in Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Atria Investments Inc raised its stake in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 19.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 126,190 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 20,261 shares during the quarter. Atria Investments Inc’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $7,276,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Altria Group by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 160,980,626 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,282,143,000 after purchasing an additional 1,903,530 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its stake in shares of Altria Group by 19.4% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 19,567,823 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,285,575,000 after purchasing an additional 3,172,753 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in shares of Altria Group by 0.4% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 16,705,159 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,103,543,000 after purchasing an additional 59,189 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in shares of Altria Group by 1.1% in the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 12,747,828 shares of the company’s stock worth $842,122,000 after purchasing an additional 132,846 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors raised its stake in shares of Altria Group by 0.4% in the third quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 12,131,644 shares of the company’s stock worth $801,412,000 after purchasing an additional 47,757 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Altria Group

In other Altria Group news, SVP Charles N. Whitaker sold 27,908 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.57, for a total transaction of $1,885,743.56. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 180,869 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,221,318.33. The trade was a 13.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Altria Group stock opened at $73.06 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $122.00 billion, a PE ratio of 15.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.48. Altria Group, Inc. has a one year low of $54.70 and a one year high of $74.56. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $67.02 and a 200 day moving average of $63.05.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.07. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 298.69% and a net margin of 34.34%.The company had revenue of $4.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.58 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.23 earnings per share. Altria Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Altria Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.560-5.72 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be issued a dividend of $1.06 per share. This represents a $4.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. Altria Group’s payout ratio is currently 88.70%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on MO. Morgan Stanley set a $71.00 price target on Altria Group in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Citigroup upped their price objective on Altria Group from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $77.00 price objective on shares of Altria Group in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Barclays upped their price objective on Altria Group from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on Altria Group from $60.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $69.33.

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.