Meitav Investment House Ltd. Boosts Stake in Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Key Points

• Meitav Investment House Ltd. increased its stake in Altria Group, Inc. by 875.9% during the second quarter, holding 87,417 shares valued at $5.126 million.
• Altria Group recently declared a quarterly dividend of $1.06, which is an increase from the previous dividend of $1.02, representing an annual yield of 6.5%.
• Several analysts have given Altria Group a consensus rating of "Hold" with a consensus price target of $62.11, while multiple firms have issued upgraded price targets between $59.00 and $72.00.

Meitav Investment House Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 875.9% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 87,417 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 78,459 shares during the quarter. Meitav Investment House Ltd.'s holdings in Altria Group were worth $5,126,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mattson Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group during the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Altria Group during the second quarter worth approximately $25,000. Carderock Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Altria Group during the second quarter worth $26,000. Inlight Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Altria Group in the 1st quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC increased its stake in shares of Altria Group by 226.3% in the 1st quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC now owns 509 shares of the company's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 353 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.41% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on MO shares. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Altria Group in a research report on Saturday, September 27th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $72.00 price target on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. UBS Group upgraded Altria Group from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $47.00 to $59.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Altria Group in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. They set an "underperform" rating and a $50.00 target price for the company. Finally, Bank of America upped their price target on Altria Group from $64.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 22nd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Altria Group has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $62.11.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Altria Group stock opened at $65.36 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $109.80 billion, a PE ratio of 12.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 0.55. Altria Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $48.86 and a fifty-two week high of $68.60. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $65.32 and a 200 day moving average price of $61.00.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.44 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $5.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.21 billion. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 295.26% and a net margin of 37.24%.The company's quarterly revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.31 earnings per share. Altria Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.350-5.450 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a $1.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $4.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.5%. This is a boost from Altria Group's previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio is 82.01%.

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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