Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. Takes Position in Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund bought 702,033 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $50,511,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. GQG Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the second quarter worth approximately $1,806,782,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Altria Group by 10.6% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 65,516,916 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,777,931,000 after purchasing an additional 6,265,780 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its stake in shares of Altria Group by 3,691.2% during the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 3,606,561 shares of the company’s stock worth $259,492,000 after purchasing an additional 3,511,430 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its holdings in Altria Group by 286.7% during the 3rd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 4,479,699 shares of the company’s stock worth $295,929,000 after purchasing an additional 3,321,262 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Altria Group by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 160,980,626 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,282,143,000 after purchasing an additional 1,903,530 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on MO shares. BTIG Research began coverage on Altria Group in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. They issued a “neutral” rating on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $77.00 target price on shares of Altria Group in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Altria Group from $50.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Morgan Stanley set a $71.00 price target on shares of Altria Group in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Altria Group presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $70.11.

Altria Group Stock Performance

Shares of MO stock opened at $68.46 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $70.18 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $68.89. The company has a market cap of $114.32 billion, a PE ratio of 14.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.46. Altria Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $54.70 and a fifty-two week high of $77.06.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.48 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.50 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $5.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.35 billion. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 315.29% and a net margin of 33.99%.The firm’s revenue was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.44 EPS. Altria Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.610-5.720 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Company 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.