Higher Cigarette Pricing Drives Altria Earnings Higher

Companies and Brands

Published: October 30, 2014 9:00 am

Last Updated: October 30, 2014 9:04 am

Altria Group Inc. (NYSE: MO) reported third-quarter 2014 results before markets opened Thursday. The tobacco company posted adjusted diluted earnings per share (EPS) of $0.69 on revenues of $4.16 billion, excluding $1.7 billion in excise taxes paid. In the same period a year ago, the company reported adjusted EPS of $0.65 on revenues of $4.05 billion (excluding $1.75 in excise taxes). Third-quarter results also compare to the Thomson Reuters consensus estimates for EPS of $0.68 and $4.73 billion in revenues, excluding excise taxes.

The maker of Marlboro cigarettes affirmed its full-year 2014 EPS guidance of $2.54 to $2.59.

In August the company increased its quarterly dividend from $0.48 to $0.52, and Altria’s dividend yield is now 4.4%. The company said that it paid $952 million in dividends in the third quarter and $2.9 billion in the first nine months of 2014. Altria expects to continue to return a large amount of cash to shareholders in the form of dividends by maintaining a dividend payout ratio target of approximately 80% of its adjusted diluted EPS.

Altria completed a $1 billion stock buyback program in August and added a new $1 billion program in July. During the third quarter of 2014, Altria repurchased approximately 6.4 million shares of its common stock at an average price of $42.87 for a total cost of approximately $275 million. Altria had approximately $778 million remaining in the current $1 billion share repurchase program at the end of the third quarter.

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The company’s CEO said:

Our business results are on track. We grew adjusted diluted EPS 6.2% in the third quarter behind strong income performance by our smokeable products segment, our companies’ leading premium brands and the strength of our diverse business model.

The company rolled out MarkTen brand e-cigarette products to 80,000 retail outlets in the western portion of the United States during the second and third quarters. Nu Mark plans to further expand MarkTen in the eastern half of the United States and complete its national expansion in the fourth quarter.

Shipment volumes for the Altria’s smokable products are decreasing, but the company is able to raise prices to keep adjusted margins near 45%.

Altria owns about 27% of brewer SABMiller, which increased Altria’s EPS by $0.01 in the quarter, compared with no impact in the same period a year ago.

Altria’s shares were inactive in premarket trading Thursday morning, having closed previously at $47.57, up about 0.1% on the day, in a 52-week range of $33.80 to $47.94. Thomson Reuters had a consensus analyst price target of around $45.70 before this report.

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