Element Capital Management LLC Invests $1.15 Million in Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Element Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 16,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,151,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. GQG Partners LLC bought a new position in Altria Group in the second quarter worth approximately $1,806,782,000. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new stake in Altria Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $631,606,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted 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 worth $3,777,931,000 after buying an additional 6,265,780 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 3,691.2% in the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 3,606,561 shares of the company’s stock worth $259,492,000 after buying an additional 3,511,430 shares during the period. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP grew its position in shares of Altria Group by 286.7% during the 3rd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 4,479,699 shares of the company’s stock worth $295,929,000 after buying an additional 3,321,262 shares in the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Altria Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MO opened at $68.08 on Wednesday. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $54.70 and a 1-year high of $77.06. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $70.14 and a 200 day moving average price of $68.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $113.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.46.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.50 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $5.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.35 billion. Altria Group had a net margin of 33.99% and a negative return on equity of 315.29%. Altria Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.44 EPS. Altria Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.610-5.720 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on MO. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Altria Group from $68.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on shares of Altria Group from $60.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Altria Group from $76.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Morgan Stanley set a $71.00 price target on shares of Altria Group in a report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $64.00 to $58.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $70.11.

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.