Altria Group, Inc. $MO Shares Purchased by Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund raised its stake in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 7.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 668,243 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 44,267 shares during the period. Altria Group makes up about 0.5% of Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest holding. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $38,531,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Altria Group by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 160,980,626 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,282,143,000 after buying an additional 1,903,530 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Altria Group by 1.6% in 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 acquiring an additional 729,999 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its stake in Altria Group by 19.4% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 19,567,823 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,285,575,000 after purchasing an additional 3,172,753 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in Altria Group by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 16,705,159 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,103,543,000 after purchasing an additional 59,189 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in Altria Group by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 12,795,466 shares of the company’s stock valued at $737,787,000 after acquiring an additional 47,638 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Altria Group

In related news, Director Ellen R. Strahlman sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.56, for a total value of $145,120.00. Following the sale, the director owned 25,102 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,821,401.12. The trade was a 7.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Ennis Debra J. Kelly sold 5,790 shares of the 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 directly owned 73,809 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,332,700.25. This trade represents a 7.27% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MO has been the subject of a number of research reports. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Altria Group from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen downgraded Altria Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on shares of Altria Group from $60.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Morgan Stanley set a $71.00 target price on shares of Altria Group in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on shares of Altria Group from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Altria Group has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $70.44.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Altria Group stock opened at $73.12 on Thursday. Altria Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $54.70 and a 52 week high of $74.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $122.11 billion, a PE ratio of 15.30, a PEG ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 0.46. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $69.16 and its 200-day simple moving average is $64.78.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $1.32 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 the consensus estimate of $4.58 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.23 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Altria Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.560-5.72 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be issued a $1.06 dividend. 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 payout ratio is 88.70%.

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.