Stocks: (MO)(GLH)(
Altria’s Philip Morris is the largest tobacco company in the world. That gives the company a lot of economies of scale, especially in sourcing tobacco and getting shelf space for its cigarettes.
It looks like the Marlboro man is getting some real competition in the merger of Japan Tobacco and UK cigarette company Gallaher.
Philip Morris is unlikely to have an problems with the new tobacco conglomerate in its home market of the US. But a look at the MO 10-K shows that international operations are almost three times as big as the domestic business. International is also growing faster. It brought in $12.7 billion in the last quarter. Operating income for the group was $2.1 billion.
Philip Morris volume was off 2.4% last quarter. Sales fell in key markets like Germany and Spain. Unit sales also dropped in Japan.
A new merged Japan Tobacco/Gallaher is not likely to help any of that.
Douglas A. McIntyre can be reached at [email protected]. He does not own securities in companies that he writea about.
The Average American Is Losing Their Savings Every Day (Sponsor)
If you’re like many Americans and keep your money ‘safe’ in a checking or savings account, think again. The average yield on a savings account is a paltry .4% today, and inflation is much higher. Checking accounts are even worse.
Every day you don’t move to a high-yield savings account that beats inflation, you lose more and more value.
But there is good news. To win qualified customers, some accounts are paying more than10x this national average. That’s an incredible way to keep your money safe, and get paid at the same time. Our top pick for high yield savings accounts includes other benefits as well. It pays one time cash bonuses on deposits, and is FDIC insured.
Click here to see how much more you could be earning on your savings today. It takes just a few minutes and your money could be working for you.
Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.
Our expert who first called NVIDIA in 2009 is predicting 2025 will see a historic AI breakthrough.
You can follow him investing $500,000 of his own money on our top AI stocks for free.