New York, May 23, 2026, 15:05 (EDT)
- Altria closed Friday at $73.90, a 0.3% rise and up about 1.1% for the week. Shares finished just shy of the May 1 high at $74.56.
- U.S. stock markets aren’t trading this weekend and will also be closed Monday, May 25, for Memorial Day.
- Altria’s smokeless-tobacco unit is moving ahead with a new plant-relocation plan, putting cost and execution in focus for investors when trading picks up again Tuesday.
Altria Group ended Friday just under its 52-week high, steady after a rally this month. The company’s U.S. Smokeless Tobacco unit said it will move production out of Nashville to Kentucky to reduce fixed costs.
Timing is key. The Marlboro maker heads into a three-day U.S. trading halt near record highs, with a new CEO at the helm. Investors are still watching to see if its dividend and pricing strength can balance out the ongoing drop in cigarette sales.
Altria ended Friday at $73.90, gaining 0.26%. Shares ranged from $73.48 to $74.16 in the session. The stock is up from $73.09 a week ago and still close to its May 1 high of $74.56. Around 4.5 million shares changed hands, less than in several recent busier days.
USSTC plans to shift its manufacturing out of Nashville, Tennessee to a new site at its Hopkinsville, Kentucky campus, the company said on May 21. Factory work in Nashville will be phased out and wrapped up by early 2028.
USSTC president and CEO Michael Brace said “modernizing our manufacturing capabilities is essential” and expects the move to “improve efficiency” and “enhance resilience.” The Nashville plant employs over 300, while the Hopkinsville site has about 200 full-time workers, according to the company. Business Wire
Altria’s move on the plant comes as the first quarter landed better. The company said April 30 that net revenue gained 3.2% to $5.43 billion, and adjusted diluted EPS rose 7.3% to $1.32. Altria kept its outlook for 2026 adjusted EPS at $5.56 to $5.72. Then-CEO Billy Gifford called it a “strong start to the year.” SEC
Sal Mancuso has taken over as CEO from Gifford after the annual meeting earlier this month. Altria set its quarterly dividend at $1.06 per share, with payment scheduled for July 10 to shareholders on record as of June 15. The stock goes ex-dividend on June 15, the same day as the record date.
Peers split going into the break. Philip Morris International added 0.3% to $188.99 Friday. U.S.-listed shares of British American Tobacco slipped 0.6% to $65.36. The action sticks with the trend around smoke-free nicotine goods. Altria’s on! pouches are still looking to pick up share, as the company’s legacy cigarette unit keeps generating cash.
Broader markets held higher. The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust added 0.4%, while the Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR Fund edged up 0.2%. Altria’s move was roughly in step with other defensive consumer stocks, not standing out.
Pressure remains. Altria said first-quarter domestic cigarette shipments dropped 2.4%, and it figures the industry’s adjusted cigarette volume is down about 5%. The company pointed to illicit disposable e-vapor products and weaker spending by adult nicotine users. For oral nicotine, on!’s pouch share slipped from last year even though shipments increased.
Wall Street’s targets are mixed. MarketScreener tracks 13 analysts with an average price target of $69.45, under where shares closed Friday. Barclays has an Underweight call and on May 15, it raised its target to $64 from $63.
Memorial Day slows the start of the week. U.S. equity and bond markets shut Monday. Later in the week, investors get consumer confidence, jobless claims, home sales and a new reading on first-quarter GDP.
Altria faces a straight question now—will buyers stick with the stock as a defensive high-yielder, or start to look at whether recent gains from earnings, cost cuts and the dividend are priced in?
