Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd Has $2.52 Million Stock Holdings in Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd trimmed its holdings in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 80.3% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 38,216 shares of the company’s stock after selling 155,925 shares during the period. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $2,522,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 160,980,626 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,282,143,000 after purchasing an additional 1,903,530 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its position in Altria Group by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 72,830,531 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,275,886,000 after buying an additional 1,147,141 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Altria Group by 10.6% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 65,516,916 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,777,931,000 after buying an additional 6,265,780 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 45,984,718 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,651,383,000 after buying an additional 729,999 shares during the period. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 22,306,173 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,286,174,000 after buying an additional 335,089 shares during the period. 57.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Shares of MO stock opened at $72.94 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $71.29 and its 200 day simple moving average is $66.51. Altria Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $54.70 and a twelve month high of $74.56. The company has a market capitalization of $121.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.26, a PEG ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 0.45.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.07. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 298.69% and a net margin of 34.34%.The firm had revenue of $4.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.58 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.23 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. Altria Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.560-5.72 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be paid a dividend of $1.06 per share. This represents a $4.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 88.70%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Altria Group from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Altria Group from $68.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. UBS Group upped their target price on Altria Group from $76.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Altria Group from $50.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $71.00 price target on Altria Group in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Altria Group has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $70.78.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Ennis Debra J. Kelly sold 5,790 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.25, for a total transaction of $418,327.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 73,809 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,332,700.25. This trade represents a 7.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Ellen R. Strahlman sold 2,000 shares of Altria Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.56, for a total transaction of $145,120.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 25,102 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,821,401.12. This trade represents a 7.38% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Altria Group Company Profile

Altria Group, Inc (NYSE: MO) is a U.S.-based consumer goods company whose principal business is the manufacture and sale of tobacco products. Headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, the company’s operations are focused primarily on the U.S. market and include the production, marketing and distribution of cigarettes, smokeless tobacco and cigars. Its flagship cigarette franchise in the United States is sold through its operating subsidiaries and is among the most recognizable cigarette brands in the country.

Altria’s principal operating businesses include Philip Morris USA (cigarettes), U.S.