Cwm LLC Buys 34,530 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. $MO

Cwm LLC boosted its stake in shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 9.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 388,156 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 34,530 shares during the period. Cwm LLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $25,642,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Westside Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 4.5% in the 2nd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,816 shares of the company’s stock valued at $224,000 after buying an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC raised its position in Altria Group by 0.6% during the first quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC now owns 26,335 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,581,000 after acquiring an additional 168 shares in the last quarter. Bar Harbor Wealth Management lifted its stake in Altria Group by 3.1% in the second quarter. Bar Harbor Wealth Management now owns 5,656 shares of the company’s stock valued at $332,000 after acquiring an additional 169 shares during the last quarter. Parcion Private Wealth LLC grew its position in shares of Altria Group by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. Parcion Private Wealth LLC now owns 11,172 shares of the company’s stock valued at $655,000 after acquiring an additional 172 shares during the period. Finally, Advisory Alpha LLC increased its stake in shares of Altria Group by 1.6% during the 1st quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC now owns 11,381 shares of the company’s stock worth $683,000 after purchasing an additional 176 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on MO. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Altria Group in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Altria Group from $68.00 to $61.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on Altria Group from $65.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $62.33.

Altria Group Stock Down 2.3%

Altria Group stock opened at $57.60 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $96.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.99, a P/E/G ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.48. Altria Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $50.08 and a twelve month high of $68.60. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $59.14 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $61.67.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $1.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $5.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.31 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.38 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. Altria Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.370-5.45 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 26th will be issued a $1.06 dividend. This represents a $4.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 26th. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 80.92%.

Altria Group announced that its Board of Directors has initiated 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 reacquire up to 1.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

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.