JPMorgan Chase & Co. Sells 702,203 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. $MO

JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut its position in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 5.9% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,259,017 shares of the company’s stock after selling 702,203 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $660,116,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Westside Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Altria Group by 4.5% during the second quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,816 shares of the company’s stock valued at $224,000 after buying an additional 166 shares during the period. Jacobi Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC now owns 26,335 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,581,000 after acquiring an additional 168 shares during the last quarter. Bar Harbor Wealth Management boosted its holdings in Altria Group by 3.1% during the 2nd quarter. Bar Harbor Wealth Management now owns 5,656 shares of the company’s stock valued at $332,000 after acquiring an additional 169 shares during the period. Parcion Private Wealth LLC grew its position in Altria Group by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. Parcion Private Wealth LLC now owns 11,172 shares of the company’s stock valued at $655,000 after acquiring an additional 172 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Patten & Patten Inc. TN increased its stake in Altria Group by 1.5% in the first quarter. Patten & Patten Inc. TN now owns 12,049 shares of the company’s stock worth $723,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares during the period. 57.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Altria Group Price Performance

NYSE:MO opened at $58.16 on Friday. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $50.08 and a 1-year high of $68.60. The company has a 50-day moving average of $62.50 and a 200 day moving average of $61.80. The firm has a market cap of $97.63 billion, a PE ratio of 11.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.45 and a beta of 0.51.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $1.45 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.01. Altria Group had a net margin of 37.24% and a negative return on equity of 295.26%. The business had revenue of $5.25 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.31 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.38 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. Altria Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.370-5.45 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Thursday, October 30th that authorizes the company to buyback $2.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 1.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on MO. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Altria Group from $64.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 22nd. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $68.00 to $61.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Barclays upped 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. 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, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Four investment 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Altria Group currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $62.33.

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.