Legal & General Group Plc Takes Position in Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor acquired 8,778,401 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $631,606,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company purchased a new stake in Altria Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $99,237,000. Van Hulzen Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Altria Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $913,000. Veratis Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Altria Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $201,000. Paradigm Capital Management LLC NV purchased a new position in shares of Altria Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $2,262,000. Finally, Fiduciary Financial Advisors bought a new position in shares of Altria Group in the second quarter worth $250,000. Institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Altria Group Stock Performance

NYSE MO opened at $68.08 on Wednesday. Altria Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $54.70 and a 52-week high of $77.06. The company has a market capitalization of $113.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a fifty day moving average of $70.14 and a 200-day moving average of $68.91.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.50 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $5.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.35 billion. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 315.29% and a net margin of 33.99%.The firm’s revenue was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.44 earnings per share. Altria Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.610-5.720 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MO has been the subject of several research analyst 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 note on Friday, May 1st. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Altria Group from $50.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Altria Group in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $77.00 price objective on shares of Altria Group in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Altria Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, June 21st. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $70.11.

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.