Verdence Capital Advisors LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Key Points

• Verdence Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in Altria Group by 6.8% during Q2, owning 68,946 shares valued at approximately $4.04 million.
• Altria Group recently declared a quarterly dividend of $1.06 per share, marking an increase from its previous dividend and reflecting a yield of 6.4%.
• The company's stock is currently rated as a "Hold" with a consensus target price of $62.11 from various analysts.

Verdence Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO - Free Report) by 6.8% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 68,946 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 4,380 shares during the period. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC's holdings in Altria Group were worth $4,042,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC increased its stake 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 purchasing an additional 4,007 shares in the last quarter. Invst LLC lifted its holdings in Altria Group by 252.0% during the first quarter. Invst LLC now owns 16,188 shares of the company's stock valued at $972,000 after purchasing an additional 11,589 shares in the last quarter. Central Valley Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the second quarter worth about $1,715,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its position in shares of Altria Group by 17.4% during the 2nd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 1,086,060 shares of the company's stock worth $63,676,000 after purchasing an additional 161,356 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Carr Financial Group Corp purchased a new position in Altria Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $241,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.41% of the company's stock.

Altria Group Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of NYSE:MO opened at $66.54 on Monday. Altria Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $48.86 and a 52-week high of $68.60. The stock has a market cap of $111.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.87, a PEG ratio of 3.70 and a beta of 0.55. The business has a fifty day moving average of $65.72 and a two-hundred day moving average of $61.24.

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 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.21 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.31 EPS. The company's quarterly 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, equities analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th were given a dividend of $1.06 per share. This represents a $4.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 15th. This is a boost from Altria Group's previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. Altria Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 82.01%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Altria Group from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Stifel Nicolaus set a $72.00 price target on Altria Group in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. UBS Group upgraded Altria Group from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $47.00 to $59.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. 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. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Altria Group in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. They issued an "underperform" rating and a $50.00 target price for the company. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Altria Group has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $62.11.

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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