9,119 Shares in Altria Group, Inc. $MO Acquired by Montecito Bank & Trust

Montecito Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 9,119 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $602,000.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Mattson Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in Altria Group during the first quarter valued at $25,000. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Altria Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. Carderock Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Altria Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Finally, Country Trust Bank boosted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 400.0% in the second quarter. Country Trust Bank now owns 500 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Altria Group stock opened at $58.40 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $98.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.15, a P/E/G ratio of 3.36 and a beta of 0.48. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $59.94 and its 200 day moving average price is $61.71. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $50.08 and a 1 year high of $68.60.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $1.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.01. Altria Group had a net margin of 37.89% and a negative return on equity of 319.43%. The business had revenue of $5.25 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.31 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.38 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Altria Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.370-5.45 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current year.

Altria Group announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Thursday, October 30th that permits the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase up to 1.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 26th will be issued a dividend of $1.06 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 26th. This represents a $4.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.3%. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 80.92%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MO has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on Altria Group from $65.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. Stifel Nicolaus set a $72.00 target price on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Altria Group from $64.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 22nd. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $68.00 to $61.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 31st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Altria Group in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $62.33.

Altria Group Company Profile

Altria Group, Inc, through its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells smokeable and oral tobacco products in the United States. The company offers cigarettes primarily under the Marlboro brand; large cigars and pipe tobacco under the Black & Mild brand; moist smokeless tobacco and snus products under the Copenhagen, Skoal, Red Seal, and Husky brands; oral nicotine pouches under the on! brand; and e-vapor products under the NJOY ACE brand.