TI Trust Inc. Purchases 18,230 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Key Points

• TI Trust Inc. increased its stake in Altria Group, Inc. by 140.5%, acquiring an additional 18,230 shares, bringing its total ownership to 31,205 shares valued at $1,830,000.
• Altria recently raised its quarterly dividend to $1.06 per share, reflecting a yield of 6.4%, up from the previous $1.02.
• Analysts have a consensus "Hold" rating on Altria, with target prices ranging from $50.00 to $72.00, indicating varied expectations for the stock's performance.

TI Trust Inc. boosted its position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 140.5% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 31,205 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 18,230 shares during the period. Altria Group makes up approximately 1.2% of TI Trust Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest position. TI Trust Inc.'s holdings in Altria Group were worth $1,830,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MO. Mattson Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in Altria Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Altria Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Carderock Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Altria Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Inlight Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Altria Group during the 1st quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC increased its holdings in Altria Group by 226.3% during the 1st quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC now owns 509 shares of the company's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 353 shares in the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on MO. UBS Group raised Altria Group from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $47.00 to $59.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Altria Group in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. They issued an "underperform" rating and a $50.00 target price on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Altria Group in a report on Saturday, September 27th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $72.00 target price on Altria Group in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on Altria Group from $49.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $62.11.

Altria Group Trading Up 1.9%

Shares of NYSE MO opened at $66.64 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $65.46 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $61.04. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $48.86 and a 1-year high of $68.60. The firm has a market cap of $111.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 0.55.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.44 earnings per share 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.21 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.31 earnings per share. Altria Group's revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. Altria Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.350-5.450 EPS. Analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current year.

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a dividend of $1.06 per share. This represents a $4.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.4%. 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. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 82.01%.

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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