MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. Buys 348,734 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Key Points

• MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its stake in Altria Group by 67.7%, purchasing an additional 348,734 shares, bringing its total holdings to 863,559 shares worth approximately $51.8 million.
• Institutional investors hold 57.41% of Altria Group's stock, with notable increases in shares owned by firms like Vanguard Group and Charles Schwab, both reflecting strong interest in the company during the first quarter.
• Altria recently announced a quarterly dividend of $1.06 per share, marking an increase from its previous dividend, resulting in a current annualized yield of 6.4%.

MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 67.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 863,559 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 348,734 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. owned approximately 0.05% of Altria Group worth $51,779,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC raised its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 0.6% during the first quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 93,363 shares of the company's stock worth $5,604,000 after purchasing an additional 562 shares during the last quarter. Investmark Advisory Group LLC boosted its holdings in Altria Group by 1.4% during the first quarter. Investmark Advisory Group LLC now owns 81,137 shares of the company's stock worth $4,870,000 after buying an additional 1,086 shares in the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Altria Group by 944.4% during the first quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 78,046 shares of the company's stock worth $4,684,000 after buying an additional 70,573 shares in the last quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Altria Group by 16.5% during the first quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC now owns 233,472 shares of the company's stock worth $14,013,000 after buying an additional 33,012 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Greenline Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Altria Group by 18.0% during the first quarter. Greenline Partners LLC now owns 5,469 shares of the company's stock worth $328,000 after buying an additional 834 shares in the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MO traded up $0.37 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $66.60. 3,204,289 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,940,380. The company has a market capitalization of $111.87 billion, a PE ratio of 12.88, a P/E/G ratio of 3.56 and a beta of 0.59. Altria Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $48.86 and a 52-week high of $68.60. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $63.01 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $59.94.

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

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a $1.06 dividend. This represents a $4.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. This is a positive change from Altria Group's previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. Altria Group's payout ratio is currently 78.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Altria Group in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. They set an "underperform" rating and a $50.00 price target on the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Altria Group from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Stifel Nicolaus set a $72.00 price objective on Altria Group in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Bank of America upped their target price on Altria Group from $64.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 22nd. Finally, UBS Group upgraded 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 report on Wednesday, July 2nd. 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, Altria Group currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price 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.