Norinchukin Bank The Acquires 12,419 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Key Points

• Norinchukin Bank increased its holdings in Altria Group by 15.8% during the 1st quarter, acquiring an additional 12,419 shares for a total of 91,186 shares valued at approximately $5.47 million.
• Altria Group's stock is currently trading at $67.63 with a market cap of $113.61 billion, and a P/E ratio of 13.08.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend increase to $1.06 per share, representing an annualized dividend of $4.24 and a dividend yield of 6.3%.

Norinchukin Bank The grew its holdings in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 15.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 91,186 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 12,419 shares during the period. Norinchukin Bank The's holdings in Altria Group were worth $5,473,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Vista Investment Partners II LLC grew its holdings in Altria Group by 4.2% during the 1st quarter. Vista Investment Partners II LLC now owns 4,302 shares of the company's stock worth $258,000 after acquiring an additional 174 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Alliance LLC raised its position in shares of Altria Group by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Alliance LLC now owns 9,452 shares of the company's stock valued at $567,000 after acquiring an additional 174 shares during the period. Patten & Patten Inc. TN raised its position in shares of Altria Group by 1.5% in the 1st quarter. Patten & Patten Inc. TN now owns 12,049 shares of the company's stock valued at $723,000 after acquiring an additional 174 shares during the period. Baron Silver Stevens Financial Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Altria Group by 2.7% in the 1st quarter. Baron Silver Stevens Financial Advisors LLC now owns 6,762 shares of the company's stock valued at $406,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares during the period. Finally, Ironwood Investment Counsel LLC raised its position in shares of Altria Group by 4.1% in the 1st quarter. Ironwood Investment Counsel LLC now owns 4,721 shares of the company's stock valued at $283,000 after acquiring an additional 187 shares during the period. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Altria Group Trading Up 0.1%

NYSE:MO opened at $67.6280 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $113.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.63 and a beta of 0.59. The stock's 50-day moving average is $60.92 and its 200-day moving average is $58.66. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $48.86 and a 1-year high of $67.87.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.44 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.07. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 295.26% and a net margin of 37.24%.The business had revenue of $5.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.21 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.31 earnings per share. The firm'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. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current year.

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a dividend of $1.06 per share. This is a positive change from Altria Group's previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $4.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.3%. Altria Group's payout ratio is 78.92%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on MO. Morgan Stanley raised their target price 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 raised their target price on shares of Altria Group from $63.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a "buy" 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 raised their target price for the company from $47.00 to $59.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Wall Street Zen downgraded Altria Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on Altria Group from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $59.13.

Altria Group Company 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.

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