Altria Group, Inc. $MO Shares Acquired by Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund

Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund increased its holdings in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 31.9% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 192,005 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 46,416 shares during the quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $12,684,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its stake in Altria Group by 62.5% in the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 16,395,070 shares of the company’s stock valued at $954,446,000 after purchasing an additional 6,302,819 shares during the period. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the second quarter worth about $126,471,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 1.0% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 159,717,148 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,364,216,000 after buying an additional 1,599,923 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP increased its position in Altria Group by 1,094.0% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,158,437 shares of the company’s stock valued at $67,919,000 after acquiring an additional 1,061,413 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its stake in Altria Group by 212.1% during the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,358,342 shares of the company’s stock valued at $79,640,000 after acquiring an additional 923,160 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Altria Group Price Performance

MO opened at $57.54 on Friday. Altria Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $50.08 and a 12 month high of $68.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $96.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.98, a P/E/G ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.47. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $58.01 and a 200-day simple moving average of $61.48.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $1.45 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $5.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.31 billion. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 319.43% and a net margin of 37.89%.Altria Group’s quarterly revenue was down 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.38 earnings per share. Altria Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.370-5.45 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current year.

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

Altria Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 26th were issued a $1.06 dividend. This represents a $4.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.4%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 26th. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 80.92%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Altria Group from $65.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. Finally, UBS Group raised shares of Altria Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $61.00 to $63.00 in a research note on Friday. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $62.56.

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.