659,529 Shares in Altria Group, Inc. $MO Bought by Rakuten Investment Management Inc.

Rakuten Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 659,529 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $43,568,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 64.7% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 17,702 shares of the company’s stock valued at $926,000 after acquiring an additional 6,954 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Altria Group by 86.3% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 6,361 shares of the company’s stock worth $373,000 after purchasing an additional 2,946 shares in the last quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. raised its stake in Altria Group by 3.5% in the 2nd quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 13,673 shares of the company’s stock valued at $802,000 after purchasing an additional 467 shares during the last quarter. Iams Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Altria Group by 19.8% in the 2nd quarter. Iams Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,176 shares of the company’s stock valued at $245,000 after purchasing an additional 691 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AdvisorNet Financial Inc lifted its holdings in Altria Group by 3.6% in the 2nd quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 21,605 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,267,000 after purchasing an additional 742 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently commented on MO. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of Altria Group from $65.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. Argus raised shares of Altria Group to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Altria Group in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded Altria Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $61.00 to $63.00 in a report on Friday, January 9th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Altria Group currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $62.56.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Shares of MO stock opened at $61.15 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $102.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 0.47. Altria Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $50.08 and a fifty-two week high of $68.60. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $58.49 and a 200 day moving average price of $61.60.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $1.45 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $5.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.31 billion. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 319.43% and a net margin of 37.89%.The company’s revenue was down 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.38 earnings per share. Altria Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.370-5.45 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Thursday, October 30th that permits the company to buyback $2.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 1.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 9th. Investors of record on Friday, December 26th were paid a dividend of $1.06 per share. This represents a $4.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.9%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 26th. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 80.92%.

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.