Gateway Investment Advisers LLC Purchases 16,712 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Key Points

• Gateway Investment Advisers LLC raised its stake in Altria by 15.3%, buying 16,712 shares to own 126,004 shares valued at about $7.27 million at the end of the quarter.
• Insider sale: SVP Charles N. Whitaker sold 27,908 shares at an average of $67.57 (≈$1.89 million), reducing his ownership by 13.37% to 180,869 shares.
• Company results & payout: Altria beat quarterly estimates with $1.32 EPS (vs. $1.25) and $4.76B revenue (vs. $4.58B), set FY2026 guidance of $5.56–$5.72 EPS, and pays a $1.06 quarterly dividend (6.1% yield, 88.7% payout ratio).

Gateway Investment Advisers LLC raised its position in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 15.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 126,004 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 16,712 shares during the period. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC's holdings in Altria Group were worth $7,265,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in MO. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the second quarter worth approximately $27,000. Creative Capital Management Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. EMC Capital Management bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 79.0% in the fourth quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 630 shares of the company's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 278 shares during the period. Finally, Gould Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Institutional investors own 57.41% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Altria Group news, SVP Charles N. Whitaker sold 27,908 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.57, for a total transaction of $1,885,743.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 180,869 shares in the company, valued at $12,221,318.33. The trade was a 13.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MO has been the subject of several recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Altria Group from $47.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Altria Group from $68.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Citigroup boosted their price target on Altria Group from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Barclays boosted their price target on Altria Group from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on Altria Group from $60.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $69.22.

Altria Group Price Performance

Shares of MO opened at $69.05 on Friday. Altria Group, Inc. has a one year low of $54.70 and a one year high of $74.56. The company has a market cap of $115.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.48. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $66.83 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $62.77.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.25 by $0.07. Altria Group had a net margin of 34.34% and a negative return on equity of 298.69%. The business had revenue of $4.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.58 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.23 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. Altria Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.560-5.72 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 25th were given a dividend of $1.06 per share. This represents a $4.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.1%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 25th. Altria Group's payout ratio is currently 88.70%.

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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