Sanders Morris Harris LLC Sells 9,868 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Key Points

• Sanders Morris Harris LLC has reduced its stake in Altria Group by 53.3%, selling 9,868 shares during the second quarter, and now holds 8,659 shares worth approximately $508,000.
• Altria Group recently increased its quarterly dividend from $1.02 to $1.06 per share, which translates to an annualized dividend of $4.24 and a yield of 6.6%.
• Analyst ratings for Altria Group are mixed, with a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $62.11, reflecting differing expectations among analysts regarding the company's future performance.

Sanders Morris Harris LLC lessened its stake in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 53.3% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,659 shares of the company's stock after selling 9,868 shares during the quarter. Sanders Morris Harris LLC's holdings in Altria Group were worth $508,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of MO. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 64.7% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 17,702 shares of the company's stock valued at $926,000 after purchasing an additional 6,954 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 17.8% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 36,028 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,162,000 after purchasing an additional 5,440 shares in the last quarter. Crews Bank & Trust lifted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 16.9% in the first quarter. Crews Bank & Trust now owns 2,835 shares of the company's stock valued at $170,000 after purchasing an additional 410 shares in the last quarter. Ridgecrest Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Altria Group by 7.5% during the first quarter. Ridgecrest Wealth Partners LLC now owns 5,751 shares of the company's stock valued at $345,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Spinnaker Investment Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the first quarter valued at approximately $264,000. Institutional investors own 57.41% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on MO shares. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Altria Group in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. They set an "underperform" rating and a $50.00 price target for the company. Bank of America raised their target price on Altria Group from $64.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Altria Group from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Altria Group in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $72.00 target price on Altria Group in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $62.11.

Altria Group Price Performance

Altria Group stock opened at $64.40 on Tuesday. Altria Group, Inc. has a one year low of $48.98 and a one year high of $68.60. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $65.87 and a 200-day moving average price of $61.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $108.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.46, a PEG ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.55.

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, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 firm had revenue of $5.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.21 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.31 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. Altria Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.350-5.450 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 10th. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th were paid a dividend of $1.06 per share. This is a positive change from Altria Group's previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. This represents a $4.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 15th. 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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