Altria Group, Inc. $MO Stock Position Raised by Bleakley Financial Group LLC

Key Points

• Bleakley Financial Group LLC increased its stake in Altria Group by 115.7% in the second quarter, owning 74,697 shares valued at approximately $4.38 million.
• Analysts have set a price target increase for Altria Group, with Goldman Sachs and Bank of America both raising their targets from $64.00/$65.00 to $72.00 and maintaining a buy rating.
• Altria Group recently increased its dividend payout to $1.06 per share, representing an annualized yield of 6.6%, up from the previous $1.02 per share.

Bleakley Financial Group LLC raised its stake in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 115.7% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 74,697 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 40,071 shares during the period. Bleakley Financial Group LLC's holdings in Altria Group were worth $4,380,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Mattson Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in Altria Group during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group during the second quarter valued at $25,000. Carderock Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Altria Group during the second quarter worth about $26,000. Sierra Ocean LLC increased its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 226.3% in the 1st quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC now owns 509 shares of the company's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 353 shares during the period. Finally, TruNorth Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Altria Group by 51.8% in the 1st quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 636 shares of the company's stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 217 shares during the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on MO. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on Altria Group from $65.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. Bank of America raised their price target on Altria Group from $64.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 22nd. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated 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 on the stock. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $62.11.

Altria Group Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of Altria Group stock opened at $64.62 on Friday. Altria Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $49.58 and a 52 week high of $68.60. The stock has a market cap of $108.55 billion, a PE ratio of 12.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 0.55. The company's 50-day moving average price is $65.79 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $61.62.

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

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th were paid a dividend of $1.06 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 15th. This represents a $4.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.6%. This is a boost from Altria Group's previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio is 82.01%.

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.

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