How to buy Altria Group stock | 39.53

Altria Group, Inc is a tobacco business based in the US. Altria Group shares (MO) are listed on the NYSE and all prices are listed in US Dollars. Altria Group employs 7,300 staff and has a trailing 12-month revenue of around USD$20.6 billion.

How to buy shares in Altria Group

1. Compare share trading platforms. If you're a beginner, look for a platform with low commissions, expert ratings and investment tools to track your portfolio. Narrow down top brands with our comparison table.
2. Open and fund your brokerage account. Complete an application with your personal and financial details, like your ID and bank information. Fund your account with a bank transfer, credit card or debit card.
3. Search for Altria Group. Find the stock by name or ticker symbol: MO. Research its history to confirm it's a solid investment against your financial goals.
4. Purchase now or later. Buy today with a market order or use a limit order to delay your purchase until Altria Group reaches your desired price. To spread out your purchase, look into dollar-cost averaging, which smooths out buying at consistent intervals and amounts.
5. Decide on how many to buy. At last close price of USD$39.53, weigh your budget against a diversified portfolio that can minimize risk through the market's ups and downs. You may be able to buy a fractional share of Altria Group, depending on your broker.
6. Check in on your investment. Congratulations, you own a part of Altria Group. Optimize your portfolio by tracking how your stock — and even the business — performs with an eye on the long term. You may be eligible for dividends and shareholder voting rights on directors and management that can affect your stock.

How has coronavirus impacted Altria Group's share price?

Since the stock market crash in March caused by coronavirus, Altria Group's share price has had significant negative movement.

Its last market close was USD$39.53, which is 13.86% down on its pre-crash value of USD$45.89 and 27.72% up on the lowest point reached during the March crash when the shares fell as low as USD$30.95.

If you had bought USD$1,000 worth of Altria Group shares at the start of February 2020, those shares would have been worth USD$678.44 at the bottom of the March crash, and if you held on to them, then as of the last market close they'd be worth USD$854.64.

Altria Group share price

Use our graph to track the performance of MO stocks over time.

Altria Group shares at a glance

• Key figures

Information last updated 2020-11-25.

Latest market close	USD$39.53
52-week range	USD$28.8959 - USD$48.3389
50-day moving average	USD$39.1
200-day moving average	USD$40.2927
Wall St. target price	USD$47.46
PE ratio	102.4103
Dividend yield	USD$3.44 (8.39%)
Earnings per share (TTM)	USD$0.384

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Is it a good time to buy Altria Group stock?

The technical analysis gauge below displays real-time ratings for the timeframes you select. This is not a recommendation, however. It represents a technical analysis based on the most popular technical indicators: Moving Averages, Oscillators and Pivots. Finder might not concur and takes no responsibility.

Technical Analysis of Altria Group, Inc by TradingView

This chart is not advice or a guarantee of success. Rather, it gauges the real-time recommendations of three popular technical indicators: moving averages, oscillators and pivots. Finder is not responsible for how your stock performs.

Altria Group price performance over time

Historical closes compared with the close of $39.53 from 2020-10-16

1 week (2020-11-20)	-1.03%
1 month (2020-10-27)	6.35%
3 months (2020-08-27)	-9.65%
6 months (2020-05-27)	1.23%

1 year (2019-11-27)	-20.54%
2 years (2018-11-27)	-26.51%
3 years (2017-11-27)	-39.25%
5 years (2015-11-27)	-31.55%

Is Altria Group under- or over-valued?

Valuing Altria Group stock is incredibly difficult, and any metric has to be viewed as part of a bigger picture of Altria Group's overall performance. However, analysts commonly use some key metrics to help gauge the value of a stock.

Altria Group's P/E ratio

Altria Group's current share price divided by its per-share earnings (EPS) over a 12-month period gives a "trailing price/earnings ratio" of roughly 102x. In other words, Altria Group shares trade at around 102x recent earnings.

That's relatively high compared to, say, the trailing 12-month P/E ratio for the NASDAQ 100 at the end of 2019 (27.29). The high P/E ratio could mean that investors are optimistic about the outlook for the shares or simply that they're over-valued.

Altria Group's PEG ratio

Altria Group's "price/earnings-to-growth ratio" can be calculated by dividing its P/E ratio by its growth – to give 5.933. A low ratio can be interpreted as meaning the shares offer better value, while a higher ratio can be interpreted as meaning the shares offer worse value.

The PEG ratio provides a broader view than just the P/E ratio, as it gives more insight into Altria Group's future profitability. By accounting for growth, it could also help you if you're comparing the share prices of multiple high-growth companies.

Altria Group's EBITDA

Altria Group's EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation) is USD$11.8 billion.

The EBITDA is a measure of a Altria Group's overall financial performance and is widely used to measure a its profitability.

Altria Group financials

Revenue TTM	USD$20.6 billion
Operating margin TTM	56.27%
Gross profit TTM	USD$12.7 billion
Return on assets TTM	14.55%
Return on equity TTM	10.3%
Profit margin	3.57%
Book value	$1.689
Market capitalisation	USD$75.5 billion

TTM: trailing 12 months

Shorting Altria Group shares

There are currently 11.3 million Altria Group shares held short by investors – that's known as Altria Group's "short interest". This figure is 5.8% down from 11.9 million last month.

There are a few different ways that this level of interest in shorting Altria Group shares can be evaluated.

Altria Group's "short interest ratio" (SIR)

Altria Group's "short interest ratio" (SIR) is the quantity of Altria Group shares currently shorted divided by the average quantity of Altria Group shares traded daily (recently around 8.7 million). Altria Group's SIR currently stands at 1.29. In other words for every 100,000 Altria Group shares traded daily on the market, roughly 1290 shares are currently held short.

However Altria Group's short interest can also be evaluated against the total number of Altria Group shares, or, against the total number of tradable Altria Group shares (the shares that aren't held by "insiders" or major long-term shareholders – also known as the "float"). In this case Altria Group's short interest could be expressed as 0.01% of the outstanding shares (for every 100,000 Altria Group shares in existence, roughly 10 shares are currently held short) or 0.0061% of the tradable shares (for every 100,000 tradable Altria Group shares, roughly 6 shares are currently held short).

Such a low SIR usually points to an optimistic outlook for the share price, with fewer people currently willing to bet against Altria Group.

Find out more about how you can short Altria Group stock.

Altria Group's environmental, social and governance track record

Environmental, social and governance (known as ESG) criteria are a set of three factors used to measure the sustainability and social impact of companies like Altria Group.

When it comes to ESG scores, lower is better, and lower scores are generally associated with lower risk for would-be investors.

Altria Group's total ESG risk score

Total ESG risk: 30.51

Socially conscious investors use ESG scores to screen how an investment aligns with their worldview, and Altria Group's overall score of 30.51 (as at 01/01/2019) is nothing to write home about – landing it in it in the 43rd percentile of companies rated in the same sector.

ESG scores are increasingly used to estimate the level of risk a company like Altria Group is exposed to within the areas of "environmental" (carbon footprint, resource use etc.), "social" (health and safety, human rights etc.), and "governance" (anti-corruption, tax transparency etc.).

Altria Group's environmental score

Environmental score: 11.31/100

Altria Group's environmental score of 11.31 puts it squarely in the 6th percentile of companies rated in the same sector. This could suggest that Altria Group is a leader in its sector terms of its environmental impact, and exposed to a lower level of risk.

Altria Group's social score

Social score: 17.43/100

Altria Group's social score of 17.43 puts it squarely in the 6th percentile of companies rated in the same sector. This could suggest that Altria Group is a leader in its sector when it comes to taking good care of its workforce and the communities it impacts.

Altria Group's governance score

Governance score: 9.26/100

Altria Group's governance score puts it squarely in the 6th percentile of companies rated in the same sector. That could suggest that Altria Group is a leader in its sector when it comes to responsible management and strategy, and exposed to a lower level of risk.

Altria Group's controversy score

Controversy score: 3/5

ESG scores also evaluate any incidences of controversy that a company has been involved in. Altria Group scored a 3 out of 5 for controversy – a middle-of-the-table result reflecting that Altria Group hasn't always managed to keep its nose clean.

Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) summary

Altria Group, Inc was last rated for ESG on: 2019-01-01.

Total ESG score	30.51
Total ESG percentile	42.94
Environmental score	11.31
Environmental score percentile	6
Social score	17.43
Social score percentile	6
Governance score	9.26
Governance score percentile	6
Level of controversy	3

Altria Group share dividends

Dividend payout ratio: 76.99% of net profits

Recently Altria Group has paid out, on average, around 76.99% of net profits as dividends. That has enabled analysts to estimate a "forward annual dividend yield" of 8.39% of the current stock value. This means that over a year, based on recent payouts (which are sadly no guarantee of future payouts), Altria Group shareholders could enjoy a 8.39% return on their shares, in the form of dividend payments. In Altria Group's case, that would currently equate to about $3.44 per share.

Altria Group's payout ratio would broadly be considered high, and as such this stock could appeal to those looking to generate an income. Bear in mind however that companies should normally also look to re-invest a decent amount of net profits to ensure future growth.

Altria Group's most recent dividend payout was on 9 October 2020. The latest dividend was paid out to all shareholders who bought their shares by 14 September 2020 (the "ex-dividend date").

Have Altria Group's shares ever split?

Altria Group's shares were split on a 3:1 basis on 11 April 1997. So if you had owned 1 share the day before before the split, the next day you'd have owned 3 shares. This wouldn't directly have changed the overall worth of your Altria Group shares – just the quantity. However, indirectly, the new 66.7% lower share price could have impacted the market appetite for Altria Group shares which in turn could have impacted Altria Group's share price.

Altria Group share price volatility

Over the last 12 months, Altria Group's shares have ranged in value from as little as $28.8959 up to $48.3389. A popular way to gauge a stock's volatility is its "beta".

Beta is a measure of a share's volatility in relation to the market. The market (NYSE average) beta is 1, while Altria Group's is 0.5096. This would suggest that Altria Group's shares are less volatile than average (for this exchange).

Altria Group overview

Altria Group, Inc., through its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells cigarettes, smokeless products, and wine in the United States. It offers cigarettes primarily under the Marlboro brand; cigars principally under the Black & Mild brand; and moist smokeless tobacco products under the Copenhagen, Skoal, Red Seal, and Husky brands, as well as provides on! oral nicotine pouches. The company also produces and sells varietal and blended table wines, and sparkling wines under the Chateau Ste. Michelle and 14 Hands names; owns Stag's Leap Wine Cellars, Conn Creek, Patz & Hall, and Erath wine brands; and imports and markets Antinori, Torres, and Villa Maria Estate wines, as well as Champagne Nicolas Feuillatte in the United States. In addition, it provides finance leasing services primarily in transportation, power generation, real estate, and manufacturing equipment industries. The company sells its tobacco products primarily to wholesalers, including distributors; and large retail organizations, such as chain stores. Altria Group, Inc. was founded in 1822 and is headquartered in Richmond, Virginia.

Frequently asked questions

• What percentage of Altria Group is owned by insiders or institutions?

  Currently 0.109% of Altria Group shares are held by insiders and 63.125% by institutions.

• How many people work for Altria Group?

  Latest data suggests 7,300 work at Altria Group.

• When does the fiscal year end for Altria Group?

  Altria Group's fiscal year ends in December.

• Where is Altria Group based?

  Altria Group's address is: 6601 West Broad Street, Richmond, VA, United States, 23230

• What is Altria Group's ISIN number?

  Altria Group's international securities identification number is: US02209S1033

• What is Altria Group's CUSIP number?

  Altria Group's Committee on Uniform Securities Identification Procedures number is: 02209S103