Altria Group, Inc. $MO Shares Sold by Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co.

Key Points

• Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. has reduced its shareholding in Altria Group by 7.3%, now owning 68,760 shares valued at approximately $4.03 million.
• Altria Group recently reported an EPS of $1.44 for the last quarter, exceeding expectations, with revenue rising 0.2% year-over-year.
• The company has raised its quarterly dividend to $1.06 per share, representing a yield of 6.5%, with a payout ratio of approximately 82.01%.

Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. trimmed its holdings in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 7.3% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 68,760 shares of the company's stock after selling 5,404 shares during the period. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co.'s holdings in Altria Group were worth $4,031,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MO. GQG Partners LLC boosted its stake in Altria Group by 8,146.4% in the 1st 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. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in Altria Group in the 1st quarter worth about $219,141,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Altria Group by 5.8% in the 1st 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in Altria Group by 40.0% in the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 11,961,220 shares of the company's stock worth $717,913,000 after buying an additional 3,415,237 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 111.3% in the 1st quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 5,558,252 shares of the company's stock valued at $333,606,000 after purchasing an additional 2,928,006 shares in the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Altria Group stock opened at $65.70 on Friday. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $65.19 and its 200 day moving average price is $60.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $110.38 billion, a PE ratio of 12.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.54 and a beta of 0.55. Altria Group, Inc. has a one year low of $48.86 and a one year high of $68.60.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.44 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $5.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.21 billion. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 295.26% and a net margin of 37.24%.Altria Group's revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.31 EPS. Altria Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.350-5.450 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.5%. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 82.01%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Altria Group in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. They issued an "underperform" rating and a $50.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays lifted their price objective on Altria Group from $49.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. UBS Group raised Altria Group from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $47.00 to $59.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Altria Group from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Saturday, September 27th. Three 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 stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $60.88.

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.

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 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.