Valley National Advisers Inc. Has $3.61 Million Stock Holdings in Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Key Points

• Valley National Advisers Inc. increased its stake in Altria Group by 25.3% in Q2, now holding 61,563 shares valued at approximately $3.61 million.
• Altria Group announced a quarterly dividend of $1.06 per share, representing an annual yield of 6.5%, which is an increase from the previous dividend of $1.02.
• Analysts are optimistic about Altria Group's stock, with recent upgrades in price targets, including a boost to $72 from Goldman Sachs and Bank of America, both giving a "buy" rating.

Valley National Advisers Inc. grew its stake in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 25.3% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 61,563 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 12,434 shares during the quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc.'s holdings in Altria Group were worth $3,608,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC raised its position in shares of Altria Group by 88.5% in the 1st quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC now owns 8,536 shares of the company's stock valued at $512,000 after acquiring an additional 4,007 shares during the period. Central Valley Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Altria Group in the second quarter worth $1,715,000. Invst LLC grew its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 252.0% in the 1st quarter. Invst LLC now owns 16,188 shares of the company's stock valued at $972,000 after buying an additional 11,589 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC increased its position in shares of Altria Group by 17.4% in the 2nd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 1,086,060 shares of the company's stock valued at $63,676,000 after buying an additional 161,356 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Carr Financial Group Corp acquired a new position in Altria Group in the second quarter valued at about $241,000. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on MO shares. Barclays boosted their price objective on Altria Group from $49.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Altria Group in a report on Saturday, September 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Altria Group from $65.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. Finally, Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Altria Group from $64.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $62.11.

Altria Group Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of Altria Group stock opened at $65.70 on Monday. Altria Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $48.86 and a twelve month high of $68.60. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $65.19 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $60.95. The stock has a market capitalization of $110.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 0.55.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.37 by $0.07. Altria Group had a net margin of 37.24% and a negative return on equity of 295.26%. The firm had revenue of $5.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.21 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.31 EPS. The business'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. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a dividend of $1.06 per share. This represents a $4.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.5%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. This is a positive change from Altria Group's previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 82.01%.

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.

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