Altria Group (NYSE:MO) Stock Price Down 1.3% – Should You Sell?

Shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) traded down 1.3% on Monday . The company traded as low as $65.50 and last traded at $66.0050. 7,916,263 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 19% from the average session volume of 9,827,605 shares. The stock had previously closed at $66.88.

Key Headlines Impacting Altria Group

Here are the key news stories impacting Altria Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Small institutional buying: Brindle & Bay Financial Advisors disclosed a new ~12,624-share ($728k) position in Altria, signaling incremental institutional demand. Brindle & Bay Financial Advisors LLC Invests $728,000 in Altria Group, Inc. $MO
• Positive Sentiment: Corporate investment push: Altria announced initiatives investing in growers, communities, employees and its brands — a PR signal that management is allocating capital toward brand strength and stakeholder programs, which can support long-term revenue resilience. Altria Celebrates America by Investing in Our Growers, Communities, Employees and Iconic Brands
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst previews point to modest Q1: Recent previews aggregate Wall Street expectations that Q1 results will show modest growth driven by pricing and cost control even as revenue/volume pressures persist; these previews set a cautious baseline ahead of the report. Unveiling Altria (MO) Q1 Outlook: Wall Street Estimates for Key Metrics
• Neutral Sentiment: Wider market context from peers: Earnings previews for consumer peers (Hershey, Service Corporation) are in the news — investors may be rotating capital based on relative near-term growth/visibility, but these items are peripheral to MO’s direct drivers. Hershey Gears Up for Q1 Earnings: Should Investors Expect a Beat?
• Negative Sentiment: Volume pressure risk highlighted: Earnings previews (Zacks/Yahoo) emphasize that pricing and cost control are likely offsetting declines in smokeable product volumes — that mix (higher price, lower volume) can constrain upside to revenue and invites investor caution ahead of the quarter. Altria Q1 Earnings on the Horizon: Essential Insights for Investors

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Bank of America raised their target price on Altria Group from $72.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 10th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Altria Group from $72.00 to $68.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Barclays increased their price target on Altria Group from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Altria Group from $47.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price target on Altria Group from $67.00 to $74.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $65.88.

Altria Group Trading Down 1.3%

The company has a market capitalization of $110.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.06, a PEG ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 0.41. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $66.58 and a 200 day moving average price of $62.56.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.32 by ($0.02). Altria Group had a net margin of 29.84% and a negative return on equity of 287.61%. The firm had revenue of $5.08 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.02 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.30 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.61 EPS for the current year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 30th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 25th will be given a dividend of $1.06 per share. This represents a $4.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 25th. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 103.16%.

Insider Transactions at Altria Group

In related news, SVP Charles N. Whitaker sold 27,908 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.57, for a total transaction of $1,885,743.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 180,869 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,221,318.33. This trade represents a 13.37% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of MO. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in Altria Group by 64.7% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 17,702 shares of the company’s stock worth $926,000 after purchasing an additional 6,954 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC raised its position in Altria Group by 86.3% during the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 6,361 shares of the company’s stock worth $373,000 after purchasing an additional 2,946 shares during the last quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. raised its position in Altria Group by 6.9% during the 2nd quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 9,630 shares of the company’s stock worth $565,000 after purchasing an additional 618 shares during the last quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL bought a new position in Altria Group during the 2nd quarter worth $346,000. Finally, AXA S.A. bought a new position in Altria Group during the 2nd quarter worth $5,752,000. 57.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.