Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. Acquires Shares of 842,661 Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund acquired 842,661 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,589,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in Altria Group by 64.7% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 17,702 shares of the company’s stock valued at $926,000 after purchasing an additional 6,954 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in Altria Group by 86.3% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 6,361 shares of the company’s stock valued at $373,000 after purchasing an additional 2,946 shares during the last quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. increased its stake in Altria Group by 6.9% during the second quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 9,630 shares of the company’s stock valued at $565,000 after purchasing an additional 618 shares during the last quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL bought a new stake in Altria Group during the second quarter valued at $346,000. Finally, AXA S.A. bought a new stake in Altria Group during the second quarter valued at $5,752,000. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $77.00 target price on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Altria Group from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. 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. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Altria Group from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of Altria Group from $50.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $70.44.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Charles N. Whitaker sold 27,908 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.57, for a total value of $1,885,743.56. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 180,869 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,221,318.33. This represents a 13.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Ellen R. Strahlman sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.56, for a total transaction of $145,120.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 25,102 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,821,401.12. The trade was a 7.38% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 35,698 shares of company stock valued at $2,449,191 over the last 90 days. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Shares of MO opened at $69.63 on Friday. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $54.70 and a 1 year high of $74.56. The company has a market cap of $116.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.48. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $68.21 and a 200-day moving average of $64.02.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 company had revenue of $4.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.58 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.23 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Altria Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.560-5.72 EPS. Analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.68 EPS for the current year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th will be issued a $1.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $4.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.1%. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 88.70%.

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.