Valued at approximately $100 billion by market cap, Altria Group, Inc. (MO) operates as a tobacco company, offering a wide portfolio of leading tobacco products in the U.S. The Richmond, Virginia-based company owns several subsidiaries, manufacturing both combustible and smoke-free products.
The tobacco giant has notably outpaced the broader market over the past year. MO stock has surged 17.6% on a YTD basis and 21.7% over the past 52 weeks, outpacing the S&P 500 Index’s ($SPX) 8.2% surge in 2025 and 17% gains over the past year.
Zooming in further, Altria has also outperformed the Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR Fund’s (XLP) 2.4% uptick in 2025 and 3.2% gains over the past year.
Altria Group’s stock prices gained 3.6% in yesterday’s trading session after the release of its better-than-expected Q2 results. The company’s smokeable products segment observed a slight drop in revenues, while oral tobacco products experienced a slight improvement. This translated into a modest 25 bps year-over-year growth in total revenues net of excise to $5.3 billion, surpassing the consensus estimates by 1.9%. Meanwhile, Altria’s adjusted EPS grew 8.3% year-over-year to $1.44, beating the Street’s expectations by 5.1%.
For the full fiscal 2025, ending in December, analysts expect MO to report an adjusted EPS of $5.37, up 4.9% year-over-year. The company has a mixed earnings surprise history. While it missed the Street’s bottom-line estimates once over the past four quarters, it has surpassed the projections on three other occasions.
The stock maintains a consensus “Hold” rating overall. Of the 14 analysts covering the stock, opinions include four “Strong Buys,” eight “Holds,” one “Moderate Sell,” and one “Strong Sell.”
This configuration is marginally better than a month ago, when two analysts gave “Strong Sell” recommendations.
On Jul. 9, Jefferies analyst Edward Mundy initiated Altria’s coverage with an “Underperform” rating and set a price target of $50.
As of writing, MO is trading above its mean price target of $57.73. Meanwhile, its Street high target of $65 suggests a 5.7% premium to current price levels.
On the date of publication, Aditya Sarawgi did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.
