Swiss National Bank Has $265.43 Million Holdings in Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Swiss National Bank lessened its holdings in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 5.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,603,400 shares of the company’s stock after selling 252,200 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank owned about 0.27% of Altria Group worth $265,432,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Viking Fund Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Altria Group by 14.1% during the 4th quarter. Viking Fund Management LLC now owns 202,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,647,000 after acquiring an additional 25,000 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in Altria Group by 7.2% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 12,073,682 shares of the company’s stock valued at $797,587,000 after buying an additional 814,665 shares in the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its position in Altria Group by 13.7% in the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 144,725 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,561,000 after buying an additional 17,429 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE boosted its position in Altria Group by 3.2% in the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 603,834 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,889,000 after buying an additional 18,626 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund boosted its position in Altria Group by 7.1% in the fourth quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 668,243 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,531,000 after buying an additional 44,267 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Ennis Debra J. Kelly sold 5,790 shares of Altria Group 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 transaction, the director owned 73,809 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,332,700.25. This trade represents a 7.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Ellen R. Strahlman sold 2,000 shares of Altria Group stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the director directly owned 25,102 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,821,401.12. This represents a 7.38% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Altria Group Stock Performance

MO stock opened at $71.46 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $69.27 and a 200-day moving average price of $64.87. The company has a market capitalization of $119.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.95, a PEG ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.46. Altria Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $54.70 and a 52-week high of $74.56.

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

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th will be paid a dividend of $1.06 per share. This represents a $4.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 88.70%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MO has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Altria Group from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Altria Group from $72.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Altria Group from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Altria Group from $50.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on shares of Altria Group from $60.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Altria Group has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $70.44.

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.