Altria Group (NYSE:MO) Sets New 12-Month High - Here's Why

Key Points

• Altria Group's stock reached a new 12-month high of $66.35 during trading, with a significant volume of 466,127 shares changing hands.
• Analyst ratings for Altria Group vary, with two sell ratings, six holds, and two buy ratings, while the average price target stands at $59.13.
• The company's recent quarterly earnings beat estimates, reporting $1.44 earnings per share against a consensus estimate of $1.37 and revenue of $5.29 billion.

Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report)'s stock price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $66.35 and last traded at $66.35, with a volume of 466127 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $65.82.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on MO shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Altria Group from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Altria Group in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. They issued an "underperform" rating and a $50.00 price objective for the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded Altria Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Altria Group from $63.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, UBS Group raised shares of Altria Group from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $47.00 to $59.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $59.13.

Altria Group Trading Up 0.8%

The company has a 50-day moving average of $60.31 and a 200-day moving average of $58.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $111.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.54 and a beta of 0.59.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.44 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.07. Altria Group had a net margin of 37.24% and a negative return on equity of 295.26%. The firm had revenue of $5.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.21 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.31 earnings per share. Altria Group's quarterly revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Altria Group

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Altria Group by 1.0% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 159,717,148 shares of the company's stock worth $9,364,216,000 after purchasing an additional 1,599,923 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its stake in Altria Group by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 72,367,263 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,315,438,000 after purchasing an additional 886,583 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Altria Group by 5.8% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 63,288,773 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,798,592,000 after purchasing an additional 3,483,487 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Altria Group by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 44,724,475 shares of the company's stock worth $2,620,229,000 after buying an additional 764,221 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GQG Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 8,146.4% in the first quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 18,698,594 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,122,290,000 after buying an additional 18,471,846 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 57.41% of the company's stock.

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.

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