Strait & Sound Wealth Management LLC Has $242,000 Holdings in Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Key Points

• Strait & Sound Wealth Management LLC reduced its holdings in Altria Group by 48.4% in the first quarter, selling 3,791 shares and owning 4,039 shares valued at $242,000 afterward.
• Altria Group recently reported earnings of $1.44 per share for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations of $1.37, with a revenue of $5.29 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend increase to $1.06 per share, representing an annualized dividend yield of 6.4%, with a payout ratio of 78.92%.

Strait & Sound Wealth Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 48.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,039 shares of the company's stock after selling 3,791 shares during the period. Strait & Sound Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Altria Group were worth $242,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of MO. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in Altria Group by 64.7% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 17,702 shares of the company's stock worth $926,000 after buying an additional 6,954 shares during the period. Ethic Inc. grew its stake in Altria Group by 84.1% during the 4th quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 30,632 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,602,000 after acquiring an additional 13,991 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth grew its stake in Altria Group by 59.1% during the 4th quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 171,727 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,805,000 after acquiring an additional 63,781 shares in the last quarter. Graham Capital Management L.P. purchased a new position in Altria Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,742,000. Finally, Guardian Wealth Advisors LLC NC grew its stake in Altria Group by 26.2% during the 4th quarter. Guardian Wealth Advisors LLC NC now owns 5,018 shares of the company's stock valued at $262,000 after acquiring an additional 1,043 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.41% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on MO shares. UBS Group raised Altria Group from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $47.00 to $59.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus set a $72.00 target price on Altria Group in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Altria Group in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. They set an "underperform" rating and a $50.00 target price on the stock. Bank of America boosted their price target on Altria Group from $64.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 22nd. Finally, Needham & Company LLC raised Altria Group to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $60.88.

Altria Group Trading Up 0.3%

Altria Group stock traded up $0.17 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $66.40. 10,018,628 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,981,379. The firm has a market cap of $111.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.84, a PEG ratio of 3.56 and a beta of 0.59. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $63.01 and a 200 day moving average of $59.94. Altria Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $48.86 and a 12 month high of $68.60.

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

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a dividend of $1.06 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. This is an increase from Altria Group's previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. This represents a $4.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.4%. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 82.01%.

About Altria Group

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.