Donoghue Forlines LLC Decreases Stake in Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Key Points

• Donoghue Forlines LLC cut its Altria stake by 54.2% in the fourth quarter, reducing holdings to 25,318 shares worth about $1.46 million.
• Institutional ownership remains high, with hedge funds and other institutions controlling 57.41% of Altria’s shares; several firms increased their positions while others trimmed them.
• Altria reported better-than-expected Q1 results, posting EPS of $1.32 versus $1.25 expected and revenue of $4.76 billion, while also maintaining a hefty quarterly dividend of $1.06 per share, or a 5.9% yield.

Donoghue Forlines LLC lowered its position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 54.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 25,318 shares of the company's stock after selling 29,937 shares during the quarter. Donoghue Forlines LLC's holdings in Altria Group were worth $1,460,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MO. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its stake in Altria Group by 286.7% in the third quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 4,479,699 shares of the company's stock worth $295,929,000 after acquiring an additional 3,321,262 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its stake in Altria Group by 19.4% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 19,567,823 shares of the company's stock worth $1,285,575,000 after acquiring an additional 3,172,753 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its stake in Altria Group by 438.6% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 3,637,678 shares of the company's stock worth $209,749,000 after acquiring an additional 2,962,270 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Altria Group by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 160,980,626 shares of the company's stock worth $9,282,143,000 after acquiring an additional 1,903,530 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Freestone Grove Partners LP purchased a new position in Altria Group in the third quarter worth approximately $89,460,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.41% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen raised Altria Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. Citigroup upped their price target on Altria Group from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $77.00 price target on shares of Altria Group in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Bank of America upped their price target on Altria Group from $72.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 10th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on Altria Group from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Altria Group currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $69.22.

Insider Buying and Selling at Altria Group

In other news, SVP Charles N. Whitaker sold 27,908 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.57, for a total value of $1,885,743.56. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 180,869 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,221,318.33. This represents a 13.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Altria Group Trading Up 1.0%

MO stock opened at $72.29 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $120.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.12, a PEG ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 0.48. Altria Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $54.70 and a twelve month high of $74.56. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $66.92 and a 200-day simple moving average of $62.97.

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

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 25th were issued a $1.06 dividend. This represents a $4.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 25th. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 88.70%.

Altria Group 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.

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 reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.