EP Wealth Advisors LLC Has $4.45 Million Holdings in Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Key Points

• EP Wealth Advisors LLC has reduced its stake in Altria Group by 7.6%, holding 74,214 shares valued at approximately $4.45 million after selling 6,101 shares during the first quarter.
• The company has announced a quarterly dividend increase to $1.06 per share, representing a 6.4% yield, with the payout scheduled for October 10th.
• Altria Group recently exceeded earnings expectations, reporting $1.44 EPS and revenues of $5.29 billion, while also providing FY 2025 guidance of 5.350-5.450 EPS.

EP Wealth Advisors LLC lessened its stake in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 7.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 74,214 shares of the company's stock after selling 6,101 shares during the period. EP Wealth Advisors LLC's holdings in Altria Group were worth $4,454,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC increased its stake in shares of Altria Group by 88.5% in the first quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC now owns 8,536 shares of the company's stock worth $512,000 after acquiring an additional 4,007 shares during the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in shares of Altria Group by 64.7% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 17,702 shares of the company's stock worth $926,000 after acquiring an additional 6,954 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of Altria Group by 17.8% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 36,028 shares of the company's stock worth $2,162,000 after acquiring an additional 5,440 shares during the last quarter. Patron Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Altria Group by 12.2% in the first quarter. Patron Partners LLC now owns 12,217 shares of the company's stock worth $733,000 after acquiring an additional 1,325 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Simplicity Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of Altria Group by 152.2% in the first quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC now owns 58,268 shares of the company's stock worth $3,497,000 after acquiring an additional 35,168 shares during the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Altria Group from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Barclays lifted their target price on Altria Group from $49.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Altria Group from $64.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 22nd. Needham & Company LLC upgraded shares of Altria Group to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Altria Group in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. They issued an "underperform" rating and a $50.00 price objective for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $60.88.

Altria Group Stock Down 0.1%

MO traded down $0.10 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $65.67. The company had a trading volume of 2,643,664 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,962,930. The company has a market capitalization of $110.32 billion, a PE ratio of 12.70, a PEG ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 0.59. Altria Group, Inc. has a one year low of $48.86 and a one year high of $68.60. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $62.70 and its 200 day moving average price is $59.85.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.44 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $5.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.21 billion. Altria Group had a net margin of 37.24% and a negative return on equity of 295.26%. The firm's revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.31 EPS. Altria Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.350-5.450 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current 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 paid a $1.06 dividend. This is an increase from Altria Group's previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $4.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.5%. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 78.92%.

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.