MQS Management LLC Acquires New Stake in Altria Group, Inc. $MO

MQS Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 10,938 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $631,000.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Altria Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. Navalign LLC purchased a new position in Altria Group during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. EMC Capital Management purchased a new position in Altria Group during the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. Creative Capital Management Investments LLC purchased a new position in Altria Group during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Gould Capital LLC purchased a new position in Altria Group during the 3rd quarter valued at $39,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently issued reports on MO. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Altria Group from $47.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Altria Group from $68.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Bank of America upped their target price on Altria Group from $72.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 10th. Barclays upped their target price on Altria Group from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Altria Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 16th. Five investment 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $69.33.

Altria Group Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of MO stock opened at $73.95 on Friday. Altria Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $54.70 and a twelve month high of $74.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $123.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.47, a P/E/G ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.48. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $67.72 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $63.51.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $1.32 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.58 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.23 EPS. 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. Research analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be given a $1.06 dividend. This represents a $4.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. Altria Group’s payout ratio is presently 88.70%.

Insider Activity at Altria Group

In other news, SVP Charles N. Whitaker sold 27,908 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.57, for a total value of $1,885,743.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 180,869 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,221,318.33. The trade was a 13.37% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 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.