Altria (MO) Increases Yet Falls Behind Market: What Investors Need to Know

In the latest trading session, Altria (MO) closed at $53.14, marking a +1.2% move from the previous day. The stock trailed the S&P 500, which registered a daily gain of 1.26%. Meanwhile, the Dow gained 0.8%, and the Nasdaq, a tech-heavy index, added 1.77%.Heading into today, shares of the owner of Philip Morris USA, the nation's largest cigarette maker had lost 7.73% over the past month, lagging the Consumer Staples sector's loss of 6.03% and the S&P 500's loss of 2.82% in that time.The upcoming earnings release of Altria will be of great interest to investors. The company's earnings report is expected on January 30, 2025. The company is expected to report EPS of $1.28, up 8.47% from the prior-year quarter. Simultaneously, our latest consensus estimate expects the revenue to be $5.04 billion, showing a 0.29% escalation compared to the year-ago quarter.Investors should also pay attention to any latest changes in analyst estimates for Altria. These recent revisions tend to reflect the evolving nature of short-term business trends. Therefore, positive revisions in estimates convey analysts' confidence in the company's business performance and profit potential.Research indicates that these estimate revisions are directly correlated with near-term share price momentum. Investors can capitalize on this by using the Zacks Rank. This model considers these estimate changes and provides a simple, actionable rating system.The Zacks Rank system, stretching from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has a noteworthy track record of outperforming, validated by third-party audits, with stocks rated #1 producing an average annual return of +25% since the year 1988. The Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 0.47% higher within the past month. Currently, Altria is carrying a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).In the context of valuation, Altria is at present trading with a Forward P/E ratio of 9.85. This signifies no noticeable deviation in comparison to the average Forward P/E of 9.85 for its industry.Meanwhile, MO's PEG ratio is currently 2.78. This metric is used similarly to the famous P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock's expected earnings growth rate. The Tobacco industry currently had an average PEG ratio of 2.35 as of yesterday's close.The Tobacco industry is part of the Consumer Staples sector. This industry currently has a Zacks Industry Rank of 173, which puts it in the bottom 32% of all 250+ industries.The Zacks Industry Rank evaluates the power of our distinct industry groups by determining the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks forming the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.To follow MO in the coming trading sessions, be sure to utilize Zacks.com.Research Chief Names "Single Best Pick to Double"From thousands of stocks, 5 Zacks experts each have chosen their favorite to skyrocket +100% or more in months to come. From those 5, Director of Research Sheraz Mian hand-picks one to have the most explosive upside of all.This company targets millennial and Gen Z audiences, generating nearly $1 billion in revenue last quarter alone. A recent pullback makes now an ideal time to jump aboard. Of course, all our elite picks aren’t winners but this one could far surpass earlier Zacks’ Stocks Set to Double like Nano-X Imaging which shot up +129.6% in little more than 9 months.Free: See Our Top Stock And 4 Runners UpWant the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Altria Group, Inc. (MO): Free Stock Analysis ReportTo read this article on Zacks.com click here.Zacks Investment ResearchWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks