Finance
How much will Altria Group pay out in dividends this year?
Cigarette smoking has been on the decline for decades, but it has not stopped Altria Group (NYSE:MO) of making huge amounts of dividend payments to satisfied shareholders. The company behind the leading brand Marlboro increased its quarterly payouts 58 times in the last 54 years.
In 2023, Altria paid out approximately $6.8 billion in dividend payments. The stock offers investors a quarterly payout of $0.98 per share. At the recent closing price of around $42 per share, investors will benefit an ultra high 9.3% return even if the company doesn’t increase its payout.
Altria Group typically announces quarterly payout increases in August. It’s too early to know exactly how much the company will pay out in 2024, but we can certainly expect the 54-year streak to continue.
How Altria could continue to increase its dividend payout
People don’t light up cigarettes as often as they used to, but nicotine consumption in the US is still trending upward at about the same rate as population growth. Altria’s first attempt to transition smokers to e-vapor devices hit a major roadblock in 2020 when the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) banned flavored e-cigarettes.
Despite selling 9.9% fewer cigarettes, the company reported that total sales, after taxes, fell by just 0.9% last year. By controlling costs and buy back sharesAltria could increase adjusted earnings by 2.3% in 2023.
Altria’s stock price is under pressure as the company loses market share to Elf Bar and other illegal e-vapor products. The competitive threat will not disappear, but it could decrease. Increasing enforcement of the flavor ban, plus the recent launch of the new e-cigarette brand NJOY, will most likely ensure that overall sales grow again.
Should You Invest $1,000 in Altria Group Now?
Consider the following before purchasing shares in Altria Group:
The Motley Fool stock advisor The analyst team has just identified what they think is the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Altria Group wasn’t one of them. The ten stocks that made the cut could deliver monster returns in the coming years.
Think about when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005… if you had $1,000 invested at the time of our recommendation, you would have $466,882!*
Stock Advisor provides investors with an easy-to-follow blueprint for success, including portfolio building guidance, regular analyst updates and two new stock picks per month. The Stock Advisor is on duty more than quadrupled the return of the S&P 500 since 2002*.
*Stock Advisor returns April 15, 2024
Cory Renauer has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has one disclosure policy.
How much will Altria Group pay out in dividends this year? was originally published by The Motley Fool
