Altria Group, Inc. $MO Shares Purchased by Macquarie Group Ltd.

Key Points

• Macquarie Group Ltd. increased its stake in Altria Group by 2.3% in the fourth quarter, adding 21,616 shares to bring its total to 975,758 shares valued at about $56.3 million.
• Altria reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $1.32 versus the $1.25 consensus and revenue of $4.76 billion versus $4.58 billion expected. The company also raised FY 2026 guidance to 5.56-5.72 EPS.
• Altria declared a quarterly dividend of $1.06 per share, implying an annualized dividend of $4.24 and a yield of about 5.9%. The stock opened at $71.83, near its 52-week high of $74.56.

Macquarie Group Ltd. increased its position in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 2.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 975,758 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 21,616 shares during the quarter. Macquarie Group Ltd. owned approximately 0.06% of Altria Group worth $56,262,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in Altria Group by 64.7% in 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 period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in Altria Group by 86.3% in the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 6,361 shares of the company's stock valued at $373,000 after buying an additional 2,946 shares during the period. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. raised its holdings in Altria Group by 6.9% in the 2nd quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 9,630 shares of the company's stock valued at $565,000 after buying an additional 618 shares during the period. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL purchased a new stake in Altria Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $346,000. Finally, AXA S.A. purchased a new stake in Altria Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $5,752,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.41% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Altria Group

In other Altria Group news, Director Ennis Debra J. Kelly sold 5,790 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.25, for a total transaction of $418,327.50. Following the sale, the director directly owned 73,809 shares in the company, valued at $5,332,700.25. This represents a 7.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Ellen R. Strahlman sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.56, for a total transaction of $145,120.00. Following the sale, the director owned 25,102 shares in the company, valued at $1,821,401.12. This trade represents a 7.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on MO. Morgan Stanley set a $71.00 price objective on shares of Altria Group in a report on Friday, May 1st. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $68.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $70.44.

Altria Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MO opened at $71.83 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $119.95 billion, a PE ratio of 15.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 0.46. The firm's 50-day moving average is $69.40 and its two-hundred day moving average is $64.92. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $54.70 and a 1 year high of $74.56.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $4.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.58 billion. Altria Group had a net margin of 34.34% and a negative return on equity of 298.69%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.23 earnings per share. Altria Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.560-5.72 EPS. Analysts expect that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be paid a dividend of $1.06 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $4.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.9%. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio is 88.70%.

Altria Group Profile

Altria Group, Inc NYSE: MO is a U.S.-based consumer goods company whose principal business is the manufacture and sale of tobacco products. Headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, the company's operations are focused primarily on the U.S. market and include the production, marketing and distribution of cigarettes, smokeless tobacco and cigars. Its flagship cigarette franchise in the United States is sold through its operating subsidiaries and is among the most recognizable cigarette brands in the country.

Altria's principal operating businesses include Philip Morris USA (cigarettes), U.S.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MO? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.