Shell Asset Management Co. Has $3.81 Million Stake in Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Shell Asset Management Co. increased its position in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 120.2% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 65,020 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 35,496 shares during the period. Shell Asset Management Co.’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $3,812,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of MO. Mattson Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the first quarter valued at about $25,000. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Altria Group in the second quarter worth about $25,000. Carderock Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Altria Group in the second quarter worth about $26,000. Inlight Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group in the first quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC increased its stake in shares of Altria Group by 226.3% in the first quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC now owns 509 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 353 shares during the period. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Shares of MO opened at $66.64 on Wednesday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $65.46 and a 200 day moving average of $61.04. Altria Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $48.86 and a fifty-two week high of $68.60. The firm has a market cap of $111.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 0.55.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.44 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $5.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.21 billion. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 295.26% and a net margin of 37.24%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.31 EPS. Altria Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.350-5.450 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a dividend of $1.06 per share. This represents a $4.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. This is a boost from Altria Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. Altria Group’s payout ratio is presently 82.01%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of Altria Group from $65.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. Barclays increased their target price on Altria Group from $49.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Bank of America raised their price objective on Altria Group from $64.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus set a $72.00 target price on Altria Group in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Altria Group in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $50.00 target price for the company. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $62.11.

Altria Group Profile

Altria Group, Inc, through its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells smokeable and oral tobacco products in the United States. The company offers cigarettes primarily under the Marlboro brand; large cigars and pipe tobacco under the Black & Mild brand; moist smokeless tobacco and snus products under the Copenhagen, Skoal, Red Seal, and Husky brands; oral nicotine pouches under the on! brand; and e-vapor products under the NJOY ACE brand.