Altria Group, Inc. $MO Position Increased by Korea Investment CORP

Key Points

• Korea Investment CORP increased its holdings in Altria Group by 52.7%, owning 1,231,195 shares valued at approximately $73.9 million after purchasing an additional 424,766 shares in the 1st quarter.
• Vanguard Group and Charles Schwab have also boosted their positions in Altria, with Vanguard now owning 158 million shares and Schwab 63 million shares after significant purchases during the last quarter.
• Analyst ratings for Altria Group are mixed, with UBS raising its rating to "neutral" and a price target of $59, while some firms, like Jefferies, issued a "hold" rating with a target of $50.

Korea Investment CORP boosted its holdings in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 52.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,231,195 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 424,766 shares during the quarter. Korea Investment CORP owned about 0.07% of Altria Group worth $73,896,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Altria Group by 0.8% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 158,117,225 shares of the company's stock worth $9,490,196,000 after buying an additional 1,300,787 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Altria Group by 5.8% during the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 63,288,773 shares of the company's stock worth $3,798,592,000 after buying an additional 3,483,487 shares during the last quarter. GQG Partners LLC increased its position in Altria Group by 8,146.4% during the first quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 18,698,594 shares of the company's stock worth $1,122,290,000 after buying an additional 18,471,846 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its position in Altria Group by 9.6% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 16,432,535 shares of the company's stock worth $859,257,000 after buying an additional 1,444,021 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its position in Altria Group by 3.7% during the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 12,243,041 shares of the company's stock worth $734,827,000 after buying an additional 441,083 shares during the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Altria Group Trading Up 0.4%

NYSE MO opened at $65.82 on Monday. The stock's 50 day moving average is $60.31 and its two-hundred day moving average is $58.34. The company has a market capitalization of $110.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.73, a PEG ratio of 3.54 and a beta of 0.59. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $48.86 and a 1-year high of $66.29.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.37 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $5.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.21 billion. Altria Group had a net margin of 37.24% and a negative return on equity of 295.26%. Altria Group's quarterly revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.31 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current year.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.