First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. Acquires 70,679 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Key Points

• First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. increased its holdings in Altria Group by 32.1% during the second quarter, acquiring an additional 70,679 shares for a total of 290,673 shares worth approximately $17 million.
• Altria Group reported $1.44 earnings per share for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations, and posted a net margin of 37.24% along with a slight revenue increase of 0.2% year-over-year.
• The company recently increased its quarterly dividend to $1.06, reflecting a 6.6% yield, and it now has a dividend payout ratio of 82.01%.

First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 32.1% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 290,673 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 70,679 shares during the quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co.'s holdings in Altria Group were worth $17,042,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Roman Butler Fullerton & Co. raised its holdings in Altria Group by 132.5% during the 2nd quarter. Roman Butler Fullerton & Co. now owns 8,990 shares of the company's stock valued at $538,000 after acquiring an additional 5,124 shares during the period. Bleakley Financial Group LLC grew its position in shares of Altria Group by 115.7% in the second quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 74,697 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,380,000 after purchasing an additional 40,071 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC grew its position in shares of Altria Group by 17.5% in the second quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC now owns 12,826 shares of the company's stock valued at $752,000 after purchasing an additional 1,914 shares in the last quarter. Freedom Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $209,000. Finally, Forum Financial Management LP lifted its holdings in Altria Group by 5.5% during the 2nd quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 21,946 shares of the company's stock worth $1,287,000 after purchasing an additional 1,139 shares in the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Altria Group Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of NYSE MO opened at $64.35 on Thursday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $65.81 and a 200-day moving average of $61.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $108.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.45, a PEG ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 0.55. Altria Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $49.58 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, beating 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 business had revenue of $5.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.21 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.31 earnings per share. Altria Group's revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. Altria Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.350-5.450 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Altria Group Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on MO shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Altria Group in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $64.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $65.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. UBS Group upgraded shares of Altria Group from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $47.00 to $59.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on shares of Altria Group from $49.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $62.11.

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.

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