Nykredit A S Invests $7.93 Million in Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Key Points

• Nykredit A/S purchased 110,288 Altria shares during the second quarter, establishing a stake valued at approximately $7.93 million. Institutional investors collectively own 57.41% of Altria’s stock.
• Altria raised its quarterly dividend from $1.06 to $1.11 per share, equivalent to $4.44 annually and a 6.5% yield, though its payout ratio is high at 93.67%.
• Altria’s latest quarterly earnings slightly missed expectations, with EPS of $1.48 versus the $1.50 consensus, while revenue rose 1.2% year over year to $5.36 billion. Analysts hold a consensus “Hold” rating with a $70.11 price target.

Nykredit A S bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 110,288 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,935,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of MO. Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA acquired a new position in Altria Group during the second quarter worth about $26,000. Hughes Financial Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 62.9% in the fourth quarter. Hughes Financial Services LLC now owns 510 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 197 shares during the last quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Altria Group by 78.8% in the 1st quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 524 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 231 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Altria Group during the 4th quarter worth $36,000. Finally, Abound Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Altria Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.41% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Altria Group

In other Altria Group news, Director Kathryn McQuade bought 1,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 9th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $67.62 per share, with a total value of $101,430.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 114,929 shares in the company, valued at $7,771,498.98. This trade represents a 1.32% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Altria Group Stock Down 1.3%

Shares of MO stock opened at $68.62 on Tuesday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $69.12 and a 200-day simple moving average of $69.14. Altria Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $54.70 and a fifty-two week high of $77.06. The stock has a market cap of $114.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.48, a P/E/G ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 0.45.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.48 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.50 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $5.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.35 billion. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 315.29% and a net margin of 33.99%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.44 earnings per share. Altria Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.610-5.720 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 9th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be issued a $1.11 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 15th. This is an increase from Altria Group's previous quarterly dividend of $1.06. This represents a $4.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.5%. Altria Group's payout ratio is 93.67%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Barclays cut their price objective on Altria Group from $64.00 to $58.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. BTIG Research started coverage on shares of Altria Group in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. They issued a "neutral" rating for the company. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Altria Group from $76.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Altria Group from $50.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Altria Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, June 21st. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Altria Group currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $70.11.

Altria Group Company Profile

Altria Group, Inc NYSE: MO is a tobacco and nicotine company headquartered in Richmond, Virginia. Through its operating companies, Altria develops, manufactures and markets cigarettes, cigars, oral tobacco products, nicotine pouches and electronic vaping products, with its business focused primarily on the United States.

Altria's smokeable products portfolio includes Marlboro cigarettes, which are manufactured and marketed in the U.S. by Philip Morris USA, as well as Black & Mild cigars through John Middleton.

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