UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC Reduces Position in Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Key Points

• UBS Asset Management reduced its stake in Altria Group by 2.7% in Q1, now owning approximately 6.39 million shares valued at $383.56 million.
• Altria Group recently declared an increased quarterly dividend of $1.06, resulting in an annualized yield of 6.4%, with the dividend set to be paid on October 10th.
• Analysts have mixed ratings for Altria, with UBS upgrading it to a "neutral" rating and a consensus price target set at $60.88.

UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 2.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 6,390,598 shares of the company's stock after selling 178,524 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC owned about 0.38% of Altria Group worth $383,564,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sierra Ocean LLC grew 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 acquiring an additional 353 shares in the last quarter. Inlight Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $31,000. Pinney & Scofield Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. TruNorth Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 51.8% in the 1st quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 636 shares of the company's stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 217 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Abound Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $40,000. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Altria Group in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. They issued an "underperform" rating and a $50.00 price target on the stock. Needham & Company LLC upgraded shares of Altria Group to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. UBS Group upgraded shares of Altria Group from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their price target for the company from $47.00 to $59.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Altria Group from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Altria Group from $49.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $60.88.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Shares of MO stock traded up $0.28 on Friday, reaching $66.64. 7,962,739 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,965,362. The company has a market cap of $111.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.89, a P/E/G ratio of 3.57 and a beta of 0.59. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $63.28 and a 200 day moving average price of $60.09. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $48.86 and a 1 year high of $68.60.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last released its 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. The business had revenue of $5.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.21 billion. Altria Group had a net margin of 37.24% and a negative return on equity of 295.26%. The company's quarterly revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.31 earnings per share. Altria Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.350-5.450 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a dividend of $1.06 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. This is a positive change from Altria Group's previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. This represents a $4.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.4%. Altria Group's payout ratio is currently 78.92%.

Altria Group 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.