Strathmore Capital Advisors Inc. Acquires Shares of 13,374 Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Strathmore Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund bought 13,374 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $976,000. Altria Group accounts for 0.3% of Strathmore Capital Advisors Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 23rd largest holding.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 160,980,626 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,282,143,000 after buying an additional 1,903,530 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. grew its holdings in Altria Group by 1.1% during the second quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 126,073,166 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,070,964,000 after acquiring an additional 1,325,175 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 1,147,141 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Altria Group by 10.6% in 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 acquiring an additional 6,265,780 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Altria Group by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 45,984,718 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,651,383,000 after acquiring an additional 729,999 shares in the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on MO. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Altria Group in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Altria Group from $64.00 to $58.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Morgan Stanley set a $71.00 price objective on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of Altria Group from $68.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report 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 assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Altria Group currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $70.11.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Altria Group stock opened at $65.87 on Friday. Altria Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $54.70 and a fifty-two week high of $77.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $109.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.46. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $70.20 and its two-hundred day moving average is $68.81.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last released its quarterly 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 firm had revenue of $5.36 billion for 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%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period 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, sell-side analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Altria Group

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

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.