Lewis Asset Management LLC Buys Shares of 12,972 Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Key Points

• Lewis Asset Management LLC acquired 12,972 shares of Altria Group, valued at approximately $761,000, indicating growing institutional interest in the company.
• Altria Group recently increased its quarterly dividend to $1.06 per share, reflecting a strong dividend yield of 6.5% and a consistent payout strategy.
• Analyst ratings for Altria Group show mixed reviews, with price targets ranging significantly, reflecting uncertainty in market sentiment about the stock's future performance.

Lewis Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 12,972 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $761,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in MO. Mattson Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in Altria Group during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group during the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Carderock Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Sierra Ocean LLC grew its stake in shares of Altria Group by 226.3% in the first quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC now owns 509 shares of the company's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 353 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Inlight Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $31,000. Institutional investors own 57.41% of the company's stock.

Altria Group Stock Performance

MO stock traded down $1.10 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $63.80. The company had a trading volume of 7,625,252 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,889,683. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $64.00 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $60.50. Altria Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $48.86 and a 12 month high of $68.60. The firm has a market cap of $107.17 billion, a PE ratio of 12.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.49 and a beta of 0.59.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.44 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.37 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $5.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 prior year, the business posted $1.31 EPS. Altria Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.350-5.450 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 10th. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a $1.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. This is an increase from Altria Group's previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. This represents a $4.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.6%. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 82.01%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MO has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Altria Group in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. They issued an "underperform" rating and a $50.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. UBS Group raised shares of Altria Group from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their target price for the company from $47.00 to $59.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $64.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 22nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $72.00 price objective on shares of Altria Group in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently 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.