Altria Group, Inc. $MO Shares Acquired by Stephens Inc. AR

Stephens Inc. AR increased its position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 8.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 266,504 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 21,124 shares during the period. Stephens Inc. AR’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $17,696,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Altria Group by 10.6% during the fourth 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. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 286.7% in the third quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 4,479,699 shares of the company’s stock valued at $295,929,000 after acquiring an additional 3,321,262 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 19.4% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 19,567,823 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,285,575,000 after acquiring an additional 3,172,753 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its position in shares of Altria Group by 438.6% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 3,637,678 shares of the company’s stock worth $209,749,000 after acquiring an additional 2,962,270 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Altria Group by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 160,980,626 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,282,143,000 after acquiring an additional 1,903,530 shares during the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MO has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $77.00 target price on shares of Altria Group in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Altria Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, June 21st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of Altria Group from $68.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Altria Group presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $70.44.

Altria Group Stock Up 0.1%

NYSE MO opened at $72.77 on Monday. Altria Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $54.70 and a fifty-two week high of $74.56. The business has a fifty day moving average of $71.08 and a 200-day moving average of $66.33. The stock has a market cap of $121.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.45.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.07. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 298.69% and a net margin of 34.34%.The business had revenue of $4.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.58 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.23 earnings per share. The business’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. As a group, analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.68 EPS for the current year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be issued a dividend of $1.06 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $4.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.8%. Altria Group’s payout ratio is 88.70%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Ellen R. Strahlman sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.56, for a total value of $145,120.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 25,102 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,821,401.12. The trade was a 7.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Ennis Debra J. Kelly sold 5,790 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the director directly owned 73,809 shares in the company, valued at $5,332,700.25. The trade was a 7.27% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

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.