Altria Group, Inc. $MO Position Trimmed by Meitav Investment House Ltd.

Meitav Investment House Ltd. decreased its holdings in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 17.8% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 51,343 shares of the company’s stock after selling 11,124 shares during the quarter. Meitav Investment House Ltd.’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $3,388,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Altria Group by 1.2% during 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 period. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 72,830,531 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,275,886,000 after purchasing an additional 1,147,141 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of 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 during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of 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 during the period. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted its position in shares of Altria Group by 1.5% in the 4th 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. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Altria Group Stock Up 1.8%

Shares of NYSE:MO traded up $1.29 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $73.17. 1,337,525 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 9,459,822. The firm has a market cap of $122.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.45. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $54.70 and a 1-year high of $74.56. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $71.08 and a 200 day simple moving average of $66.33.

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

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports 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 report on Wednesday, May 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on shares of Altria Group from $60.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Altria Group from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Altria Group from $68.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Altria Group from $76.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $70.78.

Insider Activity

In related news, 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 transaction of $418,327.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 73,809 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,332,700.25. This represents a 7.27% decrease in their position. The transaction 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 company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $1,821,401.12. This trade represents a 7.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

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.