5 Green Days In A Row: Altria Stock Is Up 6.7%
Shares of Altria (MO) have closed higher in each of the last 5 sessions, a cumulative gain of 6.7%. That added about $7.5 billion to the company’s market value, which now stands at about $119.3 billion. The stock closed at $71.42 on Thursday, October 8, 3.1% below its 52-week high of $73.74 and 36.8% above its low of $52.19.
How The Streak Stacks Up Against The S&P 500
Returns for MO and the S&P 500 over the streak and the periods around it, all ending Thursday, October 8 and including dividends:
| Return Period | MO | S&P 500 |
|---|---|---|
| 1 Day | 2.9% | -0.5% |
| 5 Days (Current Streak) | 6.7% | 1.3% |
| 1 Month (21 Trading Days) | 6.9% | 1.8% |
| 3 Months (63 Trading Days) | 1.1% | 2.8% |
| Year To Date | 29.9% | 14.4% |
| 1 Year (252 Trading Days) | 14.4% | 17.0% |
How The Streak Compares With The Market
Over the same 5 trading days, the S&P 500 returned +1.3% including dividends, so the run is mostly Altria’s own story rather than the market’s. 20 other S&P 500 stocks are currently on winning streaks of 5 days or longer. Over the past three months the stock is up 1.1%, a window that includes the streak; over the other 58 sessions of that window it was down 5.3%.
What The Numbers Say About The Rally
On the fundamentals, revenue grew 0.9% over the last twelve months, against a median of 4.8% for S&P 500 Consumer Staples stocks; its operating margin is 59.9%, versus a median of 15.2%; and the stock trades at 15.0 times trailing earnings against a median of 22.6. The read is mixed: margins above the median and a multiple below the median on one side, revenue growth below the median on the other.
A climb like this is worth respecting, and worth testing. Our Guidance Momentum screen tracks the stocks whose companies just raised their own forward numbers.
For anyone who would rather back the theme than one company, a consumer staples ETF like XLP holds the whole group, not just this stock. It is still a concentrated bet on one theme, which is the gap the portfolio below is built to close.
Streaks End. Discipline Compounds
A run like this is genuinely useful information: something about this business has the market’s full attention. But streaks are where discipline gets tested, because the urge to chase strength is strongest right before it pauses.
The Trefis High Quality (HQ) Portfolio channels that urge into a system: roughly 30 businesses selected for consistent cash generation, strong margins, and resilient balance sheets, sized and rebalanced with rules rather than excitement. It has a track record of outpacing a benchmark that combines the S&P 500, the S&P MidCap 400, and the Russell 2000. Enjoy the streak; own the process.