Nisa Investment Advisors LLC Increases Position in Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 21.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 573,647 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 99,935 shares during the period. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $38,504,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MO. Kercheville Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 3.7% in the third quarter. Kercheville Advisors LLC now owns 4,397 shares of the company’s stock valued at $290,000 after purchasing an additional 156 shares during the period. Founders Grove Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in Altria Group by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Founders Grove Wealth Partners LLC now owns 5,781 shares of the company’s stock valued at $382,000 after buying an additional 165 shares during the period. Westside Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Altria Group by 4.5% during the 2nd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,816 shares of the company’s stock worth $224,000 after buying an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 0.6% in 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 period. Finally, Bar Harbor Wealth Management lifted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 3.1% in the 2nd quarter. Bar Harbor Wealth Management now owns 5,656 shares of the company’s stock worth $332,000 after acquiring an additional 169 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MO has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group upgraded shares of Altria Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $63.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Altria Group in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Altria Group from $65.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Altria Group has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $62.56.

Altria Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MO opened at $55.88 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $93.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 0.47. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $57.98 and its 200-day simple moving average is $61.50. Altria Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $50.08 and a 12 month high of $68.60.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $1.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $5.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.31 billion. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 319.43% and a net margin of 37.89%.Altria Group’s revenue was down 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.38 earnings per share. Altria Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.370-5.45 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 9th. Investors of record on Friday, December 26th will be paid a $1.06 dividend. This represents a $4.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 26th. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 80.92%.

Altria Group announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, October 30th that allows the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 1.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

About Altria Group

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.