Mattson Financial Services LLC Invests $1.19 Million in Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Mattson Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund acquired 17,943 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,185,000.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Dumont & Blake Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Altria Group in the 3rd quarter worth $208,000. Institute for Wealth Management LLC. boosted its stake in shares of Altria Group by 10.5% in the third quarter. Institute for Wealth Management LLC. now owns 9,781 shares of the company’s stock worth $646,000 after acquiring an additional 929 shares during the period. Optivise Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the third quarter worth about $238,000. Archford Capital Strategies LLC raised its stake in Altria Group by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. Archford Capital Strategies LLC now owns 120,127 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,936,000 after purchasing an additional 3,171 shares during the period. Finally, Indiana Trust & Investment Management Co lifted its holdings in Altria Group by 13.1% in the 3rd quarter. Indiana Trust & Investment Management Co now owns 3,450 shares of the company’s stock worth $228,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Altria Group from $65.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Altria Group from $68.00 to $61.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 31st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $62.33.

Altria Group Price Performance

NYSE:MO opened at $57.60 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $96.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.99, a PEG ratio of 3.27 and a beta of 0.48. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $50.08 and a 1 year high of $68.60. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $59.14 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $61.70.

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

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 26th will be paid 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 of this dividend is Friday, December 26th. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 80.92%.

Altria Group declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Thursday, October 30th that allows the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 1.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

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.