Ieq Capital LLC Makes New Investment in Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Ieq Capital LLC bought a new stake in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 137,401 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,886,000.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position 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 worth $9,282,143,000 after purchasing an additional 1,903,530 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. lifted its position in Altria Group by 1.1% in the second quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 126,073,166 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,070,964,000 after buying an additional 1,325,175 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its position in Altria Group by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 72,830,531 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,275,886,000 after buying an additional 1,147,141 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Altria Group by 10.6% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 65,516,916 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,777,931,000 after buying an additional 6,265,780 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Altria Group by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 45,984,718 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,651,383,000 after buying an additional 729,999 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on shares of Altria Group from $60.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $76.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $64.00 to $58.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Morgan Stanley set a $71.00 target price on shares of Altria Group in a report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Altria Group in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Altria Group currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $70.11.

Altria Group Trading Down 0.3%

MO opened at $65.87 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $70.20 and its 200 day moving average price is $68.86. Altria Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $54.70 and a 12-month high of $77.06. The firm has a market cap of $109.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.90, a PEG ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.46.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last released its 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 firm had revenue of $5.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.35 billion. Altria Group had a net margin of 33.99% and a negative return on equity of 315.29%. The business’s revenue was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.44 earnings per share. Altria Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.610-5.720 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Altria Group

In related news, Director Ennis Debra J. Kelly sold 5,790 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.25, for a total transaction of $418,327.50. Following the sale, 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Ellen R. Strahlman sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.56, for a total transaction of $145,120.00. Following the sale, the director owned 25,102 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,821,401.12. This trade represents a 7.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Altria Group Company 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.