Teacher Retirement System of Texas Sells 56,376 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Teacher Retirement System of Texas decreased its stake in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 5.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,020,888 shares of the company’s stock after selling 56,376 shares during the quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas owned about 0.06% of Altria Group worth $67,440,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of MO. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Altria Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Country Trust Bank lifted its position in shares of Altria Group by 400.0% in the second quarter. Country Trust Bank now owns 500 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Anfield Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Altria Group by 334.7% in the second quarter. Anfield Capital Management LLC now owns 539 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 415 shares in the last quarter. Winnow Wealth LLC bought a new position in Altria Group during the second quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, WFA of San Diego LLC purchased a new position in Altria Group during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $39,000. 57.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently issued reports on MO shares. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Altria Group from $65.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Altria Group in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. UBS Group upgraded shares of Altria Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $61.00 to $63.00 in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Finally, Argus upgraded Altria Group to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Five investment 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 has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $62.56.

Altria Group Price Performance

Shares of MO stock opened at $61.02 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $102.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.65, a P/E/G ratio of 3.38 and a beta of 0.47. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $58.62 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $61.60. Altria Group, Inc. has a one year low of $50.08 and a one year high of $68.60.

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

Altria Group announced that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Thursday, October 30th that permits the company to buyback $2.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to purchase up to 1.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 26th were paid a dividend of $1.06 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 26th. This represents a $4.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.9%. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 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.