High-Yield Altria Stock Rose With the Market in the First Half of 2024, but Don't Get Too Excited for the Rest of the Year
Dividend investors often get so enamored of a high yield that they overlook a company's underlying problems. That is quite possibly what happened with Altria (NYSE: MO) in the first half of 2024, a period in which the stock rose 13%, roughly matching the gain of the broader market. The thing is, Altria's most important business, its deeply troubled cigarettes operation, isn't likely to have seen a material change in direction in the first half.
Altria's dividend yield is a huge 8.5% today. It was higher than that at the start of 2024, when the stock price was nearly 15% lower. A huge yield is the big attraction for most investors with this stock. Notably, the dividend has been increased regularly so there's a trend here that suggests the dividend is strong. And, in fact, there's no reason to believe the dividend is at risk of a cut in the near term.
Image source: Getty Images.
Source Fool.com
