Corient Private Wealth LLC Reduces Position in Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Key Points

• Corient Private Wealth LLC cut its Altria Group stake by 6.9% in the fourth quarter, selling 39,659 shares and ending with 533,924 shares worth about $30.8 million.
• Altria reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $1.32 versus $1.25 expected and revenue of $4.76 billion, up 5.3% year over year.
• The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $1.06 per share, implying an annualized yield of 6.1%, while analysts currently rate the stock a consensus Hold with a $70.44 target price.

Corient Private Wealth LLC decreased its stake in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 6.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 533,924 shares of the company's stock after selling 39,659 shares during the quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC's holdings in Altria Group were worth $30,800,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in MO. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 160,980,626 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,282,143,000 after buying an additional 1,903,530 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Altria Group by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 72,830,531 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,275,886,000 after acquiring an additional 1,147,141 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Altria Group by 10.6% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 65,516,916 shares of the company's stock worth $3,777,931,000 after acquiring an additional 6,265,780 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Altria Group by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 45,984,718 shares of the company's stock worth $2,651,383,000 after acquiring an additional 729,999 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted its position in Altria Group by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 22,306,173 shares of the company's stock worth $1,286,174,000 after acquiring an additional 335,089 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.41% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on MO. Wall Street Zen downgraded Altria Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $77.00 target price on shares of Altria Group in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Altria Group from $50.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Morgan Stanley set a $71.00 price target on shares of Altria Group in a report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on shares of Altria Group from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $70.44.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Shares of MO opened at $69.18 on Monday. The business's 50-day moving average is $69.72 and its two-hundred day moving average is $65.35. The company has a market capitalization of $115.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.47, a P/E/G ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.46. Altria Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $54.70 and a fifty-two week high of $74.56.

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

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be issued a $1.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $4.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.1%. Altria Group's payout ratio is presently 88.70%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Altria Group news, Director Ennis Debra J. Kelly sold 5,790 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.25, for a total value of $418,327.50. Following the sale, the director owned 73,809 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,332,700.25. This represents a 7.27% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Ellen R. Strahlman sold 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.56, for a total value of $145,120.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 25,102 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,821,401.12. This represents a 7.38% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Altria Group Company 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.

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