Gotham Asset Management LLC Buys 33,012 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Key Points

• Gotham Asset Management LLC increased its holding in Altria Group by 16.5%, acquiring an additional 33,012 shares, bringing their total to 233,472 shares valued at approximately $14 million.
• Altria Group's stock recently reported earnings of $1.44 per share, exceeding expectations, and announced a quarterly dividend increase to $1.06, reflecting a dividend yield of 6.4%.
• Analysts have mixed views on Altria Group, with target price adjustments ranging from $50 to $72, and an average rating of "Hold" from market analysts.

Gotham Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 16.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 233,472 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 33,012 shares during the quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC's holdings in Altria Group were worth $14,013,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MO. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position in Altria Group by 64.7% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 17,702 shares of the company's stock valued at $926,000 after purchasing an additional 6,954 shares during the period. First Manhattan CO. LLC. lifted its position in Altria Group by 7.1% during the fourth quarter. First Manhattan CO. LLC. now owns 119,739 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,261,000 after purchasing an additional 7,936 shares during the period. Ethic Inc. lifted its position in Altria Group by 84.1% during the fourth quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 30,632 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,602,000 after purchasing an additional 13,991 shares during the period. Focus Partners Wealth lifted its position in Altria Group by 59.1% during the fourth quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 171,727 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,805,000 after purchasing an additional 63,781 shares during the period. Finally, Greenline Partners LLC lifted its position in Altria Group by 10.7% during the fourth quarter. Greenline Partners LLC now owns 4,635 shares of the company's stock valued at $242,000 after purchasing an additional 448 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.41% of the company's stock.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MO traded up $0.15 on Thursday, reaching $66.38. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,631,811 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,949,019. Altria Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $48.86 and a 52-week high of $68.60. The company has a market cap of $111.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.84, a PEG ratio of 3.56 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $63.01 and a 200 day simple moving average of $59.94.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.44 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 analysts' expectations of $5.21 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.31 EPS. The business's revenue 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, equities research analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The company 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 dividend of $1.06 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $4.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.4%. This is a boost from Altria Group's previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 78.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on MO. Needham & Company LLC upgraded shares of Altria Group to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Morgan Stanley increased their price target 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. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Altria Group in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. They issued an "underperform" rating and a $50.00 price target on the stock. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Altria Group from $64.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. Finally, UBS Group upgraded shares of Altria Group from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $47.00 to $59.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Altria Group has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $60.88.

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.