Sanders Morris Harris LLC Has $4.17 Million Stock Position in Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Sanders Morris Harris LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 15.8% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 57,955 shares of the company’s stock after selling 10,843 shares during the quarter. Altria Group comprises about 2.4% of Sanders Morris Harris LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest holding. Sanders Morris Harris LLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $4,170,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Altria Group by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 160,980,626 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,282,143,000 after acquiring an additional 1,903,530 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Altria Group by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 72,830,531 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,275,886,000 after purchasing an additional 1,147,141 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 10.6% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 65,516,916 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,777,931,000 after purchasing an additional 6,265,780 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Altria Group by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 45,984,718 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,651,383,000 after purchasing an additional 729,999 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased its stake in shares of Altria Group by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 22,306,173 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,286,174,000 after purchasing an additional 335,089 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley set a $71.00 price objective on Altria Group in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Barclays boosted their target price on Altria Group from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. 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. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Altria Group in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $72.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $70.78.

Altria Group Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of MO stock opened at $68.45 on Thursday. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $54.70 and a 1-year high of $77.06. The stock has a market cap of $114.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.44, a PEG ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.46. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $71.45 and a 200-day moving average of $68.52.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.48 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $5.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.35 billion. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 315.29% and a net margin of 33.99%.Altria Group’s revenue was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.44 earnings per share. Altria Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.610-5.720 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 10th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th were paid a dividend of $1.06 per share. This represents a $4.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 15th. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 89.45%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Altria Group

In other Altria Group news, Director Ellen R. Strahlman sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.56, for a total transaction of $145,120.00. Following the sale, the director owned 25,102 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,821,401.12. This represents a 7.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Ennis Debra J. Kelly sold 5,790 shares of Altria Group stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.25, for a total value of $418,327.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 73,809 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,332,700.25. This trade represents a 7.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.