Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Sells 238,271 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Key Points

• Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC reduced its stake in Altria Group, Inc. by 39.6% in Q2, selling 238,271 shares and leaving it with 363,849 shares valued at around $21.15 million.
• Altria Group announced a quarterly dividend increase to $1.06 per share, reflecting a 6.6% yield and boosting its annualized dividend from the previous $1.02.
• The company reported Q2 earnings of $1.44 per share, exceeding analysts' estimates, with a slight revenue increase compared to the previous year.

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 39.6% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 363,849 shares of the company's stock after selling 238,271 shares during the quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC's holdings in Altria Group were worth $21,154,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Mattson Financial Services LLC bought a new position in Altria Group during the first quarter worth about $25,000. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Altria Group during the second quarter worth about $25,000. Carderock Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Altria Group during the second quarter worth about $26,000. Inlight Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Altria Group during the first quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC grew its stake in Altria Group by 226.3% during the first quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC now owns 509 shares of the company's stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 353 shares in the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Altria Group Trading Down 1.0%

MO opened at $64.23 on Friday. The company's 50 day moving average is $65.88 and its 200-day moving average is $61.37. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $48.86 and a 1-year high of $68.60. The company has a market cap of $107.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.42, a PEG ratio of 3.61 and a beta of 0.55.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.44 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 company had revenue of $5.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.21 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.31 EPS. The firm's quarterly 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. On average, equities analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current year.

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 10th. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th were given a dividend of $1.06 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 15th. This represents a $4.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.6%. This is a boost from Altria Group's previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio is 82.01%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on MO. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $65.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. They set an "underperform" rating and a $50.00 price objective on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective 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. Finally, UBS Group upgraded shares of Altria Group from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their price target for the company from $47.00 to $59.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Four 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. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $62.11.

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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