AlphaQuest LLC Has $912,000 Stake in Altria Group, Inc. $MO

AlphaQuest LLC increased its holdings in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 127.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 15,554 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,729 shares during the quarter. AlphaQuest LLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $912,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mattson Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in Altria Group during the first quarter worth $25,000. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Altria Group during the second quarter worth $25,000. Carderock Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Altria Group during the second quarter worth $26,000. Sierra Ocean LLC raised its position in Altria Group by 226.3% during the first quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC now owns 509 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 353 shares in the last quarter. Finally, TruNorth Capital Management LLC raised its position in Altria Group by 51.8% during the first quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 636 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 217 shares in the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MO has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $49.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Altria Group in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $50.00 price objective on the stock. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Altria Group in a research report on Friday. UBS Group raised shares of Altria Group from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $47.00 to $59.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Finally, Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $64.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $62.11.

Altria Group Stock Performance

NYSE:MO opened at $64.72 on Monday. Altria Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $49.58 and a 52 week high of $68.60. The firm has a market cap of $108.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.52, a P/E/G ratio of 3.60 and a beta of 0.55. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $65.76 and its 200 day simple moving average is $61.76.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.44 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 business had revenue of $5.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.21 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.31 earnings per share. 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. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current year.

Altria Group Increases Dividend

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

Altria Group Company Profile

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.