Altria Group, Inc. $MO Shares Sold by Napa Wealth Management

Key Points

• Napa Wealth Management significantly reduced its stake in Altria Group, Inc. by 89.7%, leaving them with 4,243 shares valued at $255,000.
• Altria Group's recent quarterly earnings beat expectations, reporting $1.44 earnings per share against an estimate of $1.37, with revenues also surpassing projections at $5.29 billion.
• The company has increased its quarterly dividend to $1.06, representing an annualized yield of 6.3%, signaling strong cash flow management.

Napa Wealth Management lowered its position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 89.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,243 shares of the company's stock after selling 37,071 shares during the quarter. Napa Wealth Management's holdings in Altria Group were worth $255,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Inlight Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the first quarter valued at about $31,000. Sierra Ocean LLC boosted 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 during the period. Pinney & Scofield Inc. purchased a new position in Altria Group during the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Bellwether Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Altria Group during the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, TruNorth Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Altria Group by 51.8% during the first quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 636 shares of the company's stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 217 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.41% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on MO shares. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Altria Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Needham & Company LLC raised shares of Altria Group to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. 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 note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Altria Group from $49.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. They set an "underperform" rating and a $50.00 target price for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $60.88.

Altria Group Trading Up 0.3%

NYSE:MO traded up $0.21 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $66.63. The stock had a trading volume of 1,816,681 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,027,920. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $61.67 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $59.14. The company has a market capitalization of $111.94 billion, a PE ratio of 12.89, a PEG ratio of 3.57 and a beta of 0.59. Altria Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $48.86 and a twelve month high of $68.60.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.44 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $5.29 billion for 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%. The firm's revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.31 earnings per share. Altria Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.350-5.450 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 10th. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a $1.06 dividend. This represents a $4.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.4%. This is a positive change from Altria Group's previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio is 78.92%.

Altria Group 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.