Altria Group, Inc. $MO Shares Acquired by Golden State Equity Partners

Golden State Equity Partners grew its position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 2.2% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 11,887 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 252 shares during the quarter. Golden State Equity Partners’ holdings in Altria Group were worth $697,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of MO. Mattson Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group in the first quarter worth about $25,000. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the second quarter worth about $25,000. Carderock Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the second quarter worth about $26,000. Inlight Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the first quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC increased its stake in shares of Altria Group by 226.3% during the first 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. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Altria Group Trading Down 1.7%

Shares of NYSE MO opened at $63.80 on Tuesday. Altria Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $48.86 and a 12-month high of $68.60. The stock has a market cap of $107.17 billion, a PE ratio of 12.34, a P/E/G ratio of 3.49 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a 50-day moving average of $64.00 and a 200 day moving average of $60.50.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 company had revenue of $5.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.21 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.31 EPS. 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. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a $1.06 dividend. This represents a $4.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.6%. 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 (DPR) is presently 82.01%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MO has been the subject of a number of research reports. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Altria Group from $64.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 22nd. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Altria Group from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Barclays boosted 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. UBS Group raised shares of Altria Group from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $47.00 to $59.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $50.00 target price for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Altria Group has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $60.88.

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.