Focus Partners Wealth Has $42.35 Million Position in Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Focus Partners Wealth lifted its position in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 23.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 730,052 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 140,658 shares during the period. Focus Partners Wealth’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $42,349,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Altria Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Navalign LLC acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. EMC Capital Management acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group in the third quarter valued at $33,000. Creative Capital Management Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Hughes Financial Services LLC raised its position in shares of Altria Group by 62.9% in the fourth quarter. Hughes Financial Services LLC now owns 510 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 197 shares during the period. 57.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MO has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $68.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Barclays increased 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. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on Altria Group from $60.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $77.00 price target on shares of Altria Group in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Altria Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $70.44.

Altria Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MO opened at $69.60 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $116.23 billion, a PE ratio of 14.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 0.46. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $69.47 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $65.06. Altria Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $54.70 and a fifty-two week high of $74.56.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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. The firm had revenue of $4.76 billion during 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 company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.23 EPS. Altria Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.560-5.72 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.68 EPS for the current year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $4.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.1%. Altria Group’s payout ratio is currently 88.70%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Altria Group

In other Altria Group news, Director Ennis Debra J. Kelly sold 5,790 shares of Altria Group stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.25, for a total value 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. The trade was a 7.27% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Ellen R. Strahlman sold 2,000 shares of Altria Group stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.56, for a total value of $145,120.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 25,102 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,821,401.12. This represents 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 owned by insiders.

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.