Altria Group, Inc. $MO Shares Sold by Meitav Investment House Ltd.

Meitav Investment House Ltd. cut its position in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 17.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 51,343 shares of the company’s stock after selling 11,124 shares during the quarter. Meitav Investment House Ltd.’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $3,388,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in shares of Altria Group by 64.7% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 17,702 shares of the company’s stock valued at $926,000 after buying an additional 6,954 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in Altria Group by 86.3% in the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 6,361 shares of the company’s stock valued at $373,000 after acquiring an additional 2,946 shares during the period. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. grew its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 6.9% during the second quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 9,630 shares of the company’s stock valued at $565,000 after purchasing an additional 618 shares during the last quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $346,000. Finally, AXA S.A. bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $5,752,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Altria Group Price Performance

Shares of Altria Group stock traded up $1.29 on Tuesday, hitting $73.17. The company had a trading volume of 1,337,525 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,459,822. Altria Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $54.70 and a 52 week high of $74.56. The company has a market cap of $122.19 billion, a PE ratio of 15.32, a PEG ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.45. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $71.08 and a 200-day simple moving average of $66.33.

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

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently commented on MO shares. UBS Group upped their price objective on Altria Group from $76.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Altria Group from $68.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. 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 report on Friday, May 1st. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $71.00 target price on shares of Altria Group in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Altria Group has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $70.78.

Altria Group 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.