Sciencast Management LP Invests $3.39 Million in Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Key Points

• Sciencast Management LP acquired 56,493 shares of Altria Group, Inc. for approximately $3.39 million, marking a significant investment move in the company's stock.
• Altria Group reported earnings of $1.44 EPS for the recent quarter, surpassing analyst expectations, and has provided a fiscal year 2025 earnings guidance of 5.350-5.450 EPS.
• The company announced an increase in its quarterly dividend to $1.06 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend of $4.24 and a yield of 6.4%.

Sciencast Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 56,493 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,391,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC lifted its position in Altria Group by 88.5% in the first quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC now owns 8,536 shares of the company's stock valued at $512,000 after purchasing an additional 4,007 shares during the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in Altria Group by 64.7% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 17,702 shares of the company's stock valued at $926,000 after buying an additional 6,954 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Altria Group by 17.8% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 36,028 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,162,000 after buying an additional 5,440 shares during the period. Patron Partners LLC boosted its position in Altria Group by 12.2% during the 1st quarter. Patron Partners LLC now owns 12,217 shares of the company's stock valued at $733,000 after buying an additional 1,325 shares during the period. Finally, Simplicity Wealth LLC grew its holdings in Altria Group by 152.2% in the 1st quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC now owns 58,268 shares of the company's stock worth $3,497,000 after acquiring an additional 35,168 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.41% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on MO. UBS Group upgraded shares of Altria Group from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $47.00 to $59.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Needham & Company LLC raised Altria Group to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Barclays lifted their price objective on Altria Group from $49.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Bank of America upped their target price on Altria Group from $64.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 22nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Altria Group in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. They issued an "underperform" rating and a $50.00 price target for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $60.88.

Altria Group Price Performance

MO stock traded up $0.17 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $66.40. The stock had a trading volume of 10,018,628 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,981,379. The business has a 50-day moving average of $63.01 and a two-hundred day moving average of $59.94. The firm has a market cap of $111.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.56 and a beta of 0.59. Altria Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $48.86 and a 52-week high of $68.60.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.44 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 the consensus estimate of $5.21 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.31 EPS. The company's revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. Altria Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.350-5.450 EPS. Research analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 10th. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a dividend of $1.06 per share. This is a boost from Altria Group's previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $4.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.4%. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio is 82.01%.

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.