Altria Group (NYSE:MO) Trading 1.2% Higher – Time to Buy?

Shares of Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) shot up 1.2% on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $69.18 and last traded at $68.7330. Approximately 6,475,507 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 30% from the average daily volume of 9,281,459 shares. The stock had previously closed at $67.89.

Altria Group News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Altria Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Director Kathryn B. McQuade purchased 1,500 shares of Altria at an average price of $67.62, increasing her direct holdings by 1.32%. The roughly $101,000 insider purchase may signal confidence that the stock’s valuation and dividend remain attractive. SEC insider transaction filing
• Positive Sentiment: Recent investment coverage continues to highlight MO as an income-oriented stock, citing its multidecade record of dividend increases, approximately 6%-plus yield, and relatively attractive valuation. Those features may support demand from retirement and dividend-focused investors. Dividend streak article
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry commentary says Altria and other tobacco companies are responding to declining cigarette volumes and rising costs by expanding smoke-free products and adapting to changing consumer preferences. The strategy offers long-term growth potential, but execution and category adoption remain important risks. Tobacco industry dynamics article
• Negative Sentiment: Seeking Alpha downgraded Altria to Hold, citing technical consolidation below its 50-day moving average and mixed second-quarter results. Smokeable products remained resilient, but oral tobacco revenue fell 5.2% year over year, raising concerns about growth momentum despite the stock’s low forward valuation and high yield. Altria rating downgrade article

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MO has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Altria Group from $64.00 to $58.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. BTIG Research started coverage on shares of Altria Group in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Altria Group in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Altria Group from $76.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Altria Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, June 21st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $70.11.

Altria Group Trading Up 0.3%

The company has a market capitalization of $115.23 billion, a PE ratio of 14.56, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.45. The business has a fifty day moving average of $69.41 and a 200 day moving average of $69.11.

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

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 9th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be issued a dividend of $1.11 per share. This is a boost from Altria Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.06. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $4.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.4%. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 93.67%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Altria Group news, Director Kathryn B. Mcquade purchased 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 9th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $67.62 per share, for a total transaction of $101,430.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 114,929 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,771,498.98. The trade was a 1.32% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of MO. GQG Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Altria Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,806,782,000. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group during the second quarter worth about $1,104,566,000. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the second quarter worth approximately $631,606,000. 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 buying an additional 6,265,780 shares during the period. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board purchased a new stake in shares of Altria Group during the second quarter worth approximately $349,743,000. 57.41% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Altria Group

Altria Group, Inc (NYSE: MO) is a tobacco and nicotine company headquartered in Richmond, Virginia. Through its operating companies, Altria develops, manufactures and markets cigarettes, cigars, oral tobacco products, nicotine pouches and electronic vaping products, with its business focused primarily on the United States.

Altria’s smokeable products portfolio includes Marlboro cigarettes, which are manufactured and marketed in the U.S. by Philip Morris USA, as well as Black & Mild cigars through John Middleton.