Midwest Trust Co Buys 9,085 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Midwest Trust Co lifted its position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 36.9% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 33,692 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 9,085 shares during the quarter. Midwest Trust Co’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $2,424,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund boosted its holdings in Altria Group by 7.1% in the 4th quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 668,243 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,531,000 after purchasing an additional 44,267 shares during the period. Procyon Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Altria Group by 59.3% in the first quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC now owns 38,926 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,569,000 after buying an additional 14,490 shares in the last quarter. Rayburn West Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group in the fourth quarter worth $2,438,000. North Dakota State Investment Board bought a new stake in Altria Group during the fourth quarter valued at $3,336,000. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Altria Group by 206.7% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 75,573 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,358,000 after buying an additional 50,931 shares during the period. 57.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on MO shares. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $77.00 target price on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Altria Group from $68.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on Altria Group from $60.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $70.11.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Altria Group news, Director Ellen R. Strahlman sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.56, for a total transaction of $145,120.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 25,102 shares in the company, valued at $1,821,401.12. This represents a 7.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Ennis Debra J. Kelly sold 5,790 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.25, for a total transaction of $418,327.50. Following the sale, the director owned 73,809 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,332,700.25. The trade was a 7.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Altria Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MO opened at $65.32 on Wednesday. Altria Group, Inc. has a one year low of $54.70 and a one year high of $77.06. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $70.55 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $68.75. The stock has a market capitalization of $109.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.78, a PEG ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 0.46.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last posted its quarterly 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 analysts’ expectations of $5.35 billion. Altria Group had a negative return on equity of 315.29% and a net margin of 33.99%.The company’s revenue was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.44 earnings per share. Altria Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.610-5.720 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.