TD Asset Management Inc Has $50.43 Million Position in Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Key Points

• TD Asset Management Inc boosted its Altria Group stake by 6.3% in the fourth quarter, ending with 874,549 shares valued at about $50.4 million.
• Several other large institutions also increased holdings, and institutional investors now own 57.41% of Altria’s shares. Meanwhile, analysts remain mixed, with a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $70.44.
• Altria reported better-than-expected Q1 results, with EPS of $1.32 and revenue of $4.76 billion, and it also declared a quarterly dividend of $1.06 per share for a 5.9% yield.

TD Asset Management Inc increased its position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 6.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 874,549 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 51,486 shares during the quarter. TD Asset Management Inc owned 0.05% of Altria Group worth $50,426,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Altria Group by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 160,980,626 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,282,143,000 after buying an additional 1,903,530 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Altria Group by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 45,984,718 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,651,383,000 after buying an additional 729,999 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its stake in shares of Altria Group by 19.4% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 19,567,823 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,285,575,000 after buying an additional 3,172,753 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in shares of Altria Group by 0.4% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 16,705,159 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,103,543,000 after buying an additional 59,189 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in shares of Altria Group by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 12,795,466 shares of the company's stock valued at $737,787,000 after buying an additional 47,638 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.41% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently issued reports on MO. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Altria Group from $50.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. UBS Group upped their target price on Altria Group from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Altria Group from $68.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on Altria Group from $60.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Bank of America upped their target price on Altria Group from $72.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 10th. 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. According to data from MarketBeat, Altria Group has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $70.44.

Insider Activity at Altria Group

In other news, Director Ennis Debra J. Kelly sold 5,790 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.25, for a total transaction of $418,327.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 73,809 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,332,700.25. This trade represents a 7.27% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Ellen R. Strahlman sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.56, for a total transaction of $145,120.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 25,102 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,821,401.12. This trade represents a 7.38% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Altria Group Price Performance

Shares of MO stock opened at $72.32 on Friday. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $68.80 and its 200 day simple moving average is $64.45. Altria Group, Inc. has a one year low of $54.70 and a one year high of $74.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $120.77 billion, a PE ratio of 15.13, a PEG ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.46.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.25 by $0.07. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 298.69% and a net margin of 34.34%.The business had revenue of $4.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.58 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.23 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. Altria Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.560-5.72 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be issued a dividend of $1.06 per share. This represents a $4.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.9%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 88.70%.

Altria Group Company Profile

Altria Group, Inc NYSE: MO is a U.S.-based consumer goods company whose principal business is the manufacture and sale of tobacco products. Headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, the company's operations are focused primarily on the U.S. market and include the production, marketing and distribution of cigarettes, smokeless tobacco and cigars. Its flagship cigarette franchise in the United States is sold through its operating subsidiaries and is among the most recognizable cigarette brands in the country.

Altria's principal operating businesses include Philip Morris USA (cigarettes), U.S.

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