Asset Management One Co. Ltd. Sells 16,928 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Asset Management One Co. Ltd. reduced its position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 2.0% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 826,043 shares of the company’s stock after selling 16,928 shares during the period. Asset Management One Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $48,431,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Jacobi Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC now owns 26,335 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,581,000 after buying an additional 168 shares in the last quarter. Bar Harbor Wealth Management boosted its stake in Altria Group by 3.1% in the 2nd quarter. Bar Harbor Wealth Management now owns 5,656 shares of the company’s stock worth $332,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares in the last quarter. Parcion Private Wealth LLC boosted its stake in Altria Group by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. Parcion Private Wealth LLC now owns 11,172 shares of the company’s stock worth $655,000 after purchasing an additional 172 shares in the last quarter. Vista Investment Partners II LLC boosted its stake in Altria Group by 4.2% in the 1st quarter. Vista Investment Partners II LLC now owns 4,302 shares of the company’s stock worth $258,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Alliance LLC boosted its stake in Altria Group by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Alliance LLC now owns 9,452 shares of the company’s stock worth $567,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Altria Group Trading Up 0.2%

MO opened at $64.72 on Friday. Altria Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $49.58 and a 12-month high of $68.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $108.73 billion, a PE ratio of 12.52, a P/E/G ratio of 3.59 and a beta of 0.55. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $65.76 and a two-hundred day moving average of $61.68.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by $0.07. Altria Group had a net margin of 37.24% and a negative return on equity of 295.26%. The company had revenue of $5.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.21 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.31 EPS. Altria Group’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. Altria Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.350-5.450 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th were given a dividend of $1.06 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 15th. This represents a $4.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.6%. This is a boost from Altria Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. Altria Group’s payout ratio is 82.01%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently commented on MO. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Altria Group from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Friday. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Altria Group from $65.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Altria Group from $49.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $50.00 target price for the company. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $62.11.

About Altria Group

Altria Group, Inc, through its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells smokeable and oral tobacco products in the United States. The company offers cigarettes primarily under the Marlboro brand; large cigars and pipe tobacco under the Black & Mild brand; moist smokeless tobacco and snus products under the Copenhagen, Skoal, Red Seal, and Husky brands; oral nicotine pouches under the on! brand; and e-vapor products under the NJOY ACE brand.