Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Grows Holdings in Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 1.3% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 3,522,209 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 44,303 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $232,677,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of MO. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Altria Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. Carderock Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Altria Group in the 2nd quarter worth $26,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Altria Group during the second quarter valued at about $27,000. Country Trust Bank lifted its position in shares of Altria Group by 400.0% in the second quarter. Country Trust Bank now owns 500 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Anfield Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Altria Group by 334.7% in the second quarter. Anfield Capital Management LLC now owns 539 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 415 shares in the last quarter. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Altria Group Trading Up 1.7%

Shares of Altria Group stock opened at $58.53 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $98.25 billion, a PE ratio of 11.17, a PEG ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 0.47. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $58.04 and a 200 day moving average of $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 business had revenue of $5.25 billion for 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%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.38 EPS. Altria Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.370-5.45 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group declared that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Thursday, October 30th that authorizes the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 1.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 26th were given a dividend of $1.06 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 26th. This represents a $4.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.2%. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 80.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Altria Group from $65.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. UBS Group raised shares of Altria Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $61.00 to $63.00 in a report on Friday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Altria Group in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. 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 company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $62.56.

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.