Altria Group (NYSE:MO) Price Target Raised to $60.00

Key Points

• Barclays raised Altria’s price target from $58 to $60 but maintained an “underweight” rating, implying 22.28% downside from the stock’s reported $77.20 price.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed, with a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $71.67; targets from other firms ranged from $77 to $83.
• Altria exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $1.52 in earnings per share versus $1.51 expected and $5.44 billion in revenue, up 1% year over year.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) had its target price boosted by research analysts at Barclays from $58.00 to $60.00 in a report released on Monday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "underweight" rating on the stock. Barclays's price target would indicate a potential downside of 22.28% from the company's current price.

Several other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Altria Group from $71.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Monday, October 12th. Freedom Broker raised Altria Group to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 16th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Altria Group from $79.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, BTIG Research initiated coverage on shares of Altria Group in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. They issued a "neutral" rating on the stock. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Altria Group has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $71.67.

Altria Group Stock Down 1.1%

MO stock traded down $0.83 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $77.20. The company's stock had a trading volume of 5,484,791 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,076,484. Altria Group has a 52-week low of $54.70 and a 52-week high of $79.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $128.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.98, a PEG ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 0.43. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $70.45 and a 200-day simple moving average of $68.75.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 29th. The company reported $1.52 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.51 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $5.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.31 billion. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 330.66% and a net margin of 34.51%. The company's revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.45 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Altria Group will post 5.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Altria Group news, Director Kathryn McQuade acquired 1,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 9th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $67.62 per share, for a total transaction of $101,430.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 114,929 shares in the company, valued at $7,771,498.98. The trade was a 1.32% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Altria Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. GQG Partners LLC acquired a new position in Altria Group in the second quarter valued at $1,806,782,000. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,104,566,000. Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $631,606,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $349,743,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in Altria Group by 3,691.2% during the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 3,606,561 shares of the company's stock worth $259,492,000 after buying an additional 3,511,430 shares during the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Altria Group Company Profile

Altria Group, Inc is a U.S.-based consumer products company focused primarily on tobacco, nicotine and related products. Through its operating companies, Altria sells cigarettes, cigars, pipe tobacco, oral tobacco and nicotine products, and electronic vapor products.

Altria's principal cigarette business is Philip Morris USA, whose portfolio includes Marlboro, Parliament and Virginia Slims. Its other major brands include Copenhagen and Skoal moist smokeless tobacco, Black & Mild cigars, on! nicotine pouches and NJOY electronic cigarettes.

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