Altria Group, Inc. NYSE: MO papierosy, wyroby tytoniowe

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Altria (NYSE:MO) stock rose 0.1% after the tobacco giant announced plans to buy e-cigarette startup NJOY Holdings for about $2.75 billion in cash, in a fresh bet on the fast-growing market.

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Altria to revive vaping push with $2.8 billion NJOY bid after Juul fiasco

Reuters) -Altria Group Inc said on Monday it would buy startup NJOY Holdings Inc for about $2.75 billion in cash, in a fresh bet by the Marlboro maker on the e-cigarette market after losing billions through its investment in Juul.

Big tobacco firms are investing heavily in traditional cigarette alternatives as smoking rates decline globally, but the e-cigarette category has faced tough regulatory scrutiny over under-age usage and health concerns.

Altria (NYSE:MO) is betting that NJOY will prove to be an easier way to tap the market since six of the company's products have received full approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

In comparison, Juul is still seeking approval of its products and is under the threat that the health regulator could pull its products off shelves nationwide as it briefly did last year.

"(NJOY) is an authorized product versus a pending product (from Juul). There are no litigation challenges. The youth usage is at minimum and so that brings a level of certainty," said Altria Chief Executive Officer Billy Gifford.

Still, NJOY's U.S. market share lags well behind that of Juul.

"If Altria wants to make NJOY successful enough so that its e-cig market share becomes somewhat respectable... we believe it will have to spend very aggressively," Barclays (LON:BARC) analysts said.

Altria on Friday exchanged its investment in Juul, last valued at $250 million, for some of the vaping company's heated tobacco intellectual property.

"We are no longer limited by the terms of those agreements to pursue other strategic opportunities and partnerships," Juul said.

Altria's stake in Juul, valued at $12.8 billion in 2018, had raised antitrust concerns and the Federal Trade Commission filed a complaint in April 2020. But an administrative law judge dismissed the complaint in February 2022.

To help fund the deal, Altria said it would use cash from a $2.7 billion agreement it entered with Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last year for its IQOS heated tobacco products.

The NJOY deal will include an additional $500 million in cash payments based on regulatory approvals of the company's other products.

https://www.investing.com/news/stock-ma ... ow-3022821

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Juul osiąga ugodę z władzami Chicago za prawie 24 miliony dolarów

Biuro burmistrza Chicago poinformowało w piątek, że osiągnięto ugodę w wysokości 23,8 miliona dolarów z Juul Labs Inc w związku z roszczeniami, że producent e-papierosów wprowadzał swoje produkty na rynek i sprzedawał produkty do wapowania nieletnim użytkownikom.

Niegdyś rozgrzana do czerwoności firma vapingowa stoi obecnie w obliczu tysięcy procesów sądowych złożonych w Stanach Zjednoczonych w związku z roszczeniami dotyczącymi praktyk marketingowych i przyczynianiem się do wzrostu używania tytoniu wśród młodzieży.

W ugodzie Chicago powiedział, że Juul zaprzeczył i nadal zaprzecza wszelkim nadużyciom i odpowiedzialności w związku z projektowaniem, produkcją, produkcją, reklamą, marketingiem, dystrybucją, sprzedażą, użytkowaniem i wydajnością swoich produktów.

Rzecznik Juul powiedział w e-mailowym oświadczeniu, że ugoda z Chicago jest kolejnym krokiem w ciągłym zaangażowaniu firmy w rozwiązywanie problemów z przeszłości i odchodzenie dorosłych palaczy od palnych papierosów, jednocześnie zwalczając używanie swoich produktów przez nieletnich.

Zgodnie z ugodą firma zgodziła się zapłacić miastu 2,8 miliona dolarów w ciągu 30 dni od zawarcia umowy.

Chicago otrzyma dodatkowe 21 milionów dolarów jeszcze w tym roku zgodnie z obecnym harmonogramem i może potencjalnie otrzymać do 750 000 dolarów dodatkowych, przyznanych przez sąd płatności, podało biuro burmistrza Chicago.

Altria Group (NYSE:MOInc, który miał udziały w Juul o wartości 12,8 miliarda dolarów w 2018 r., w poniedziałek wymienił swoją inwestycję w Juul, ostatnio wycenioną na 250 milionów dolarów, na część podgrzewanej własności intelektualnej firmy wapowania.

Altria powiedziała, że kupi startup NJOY Holdings Inc za około 2,75 miliarda dolarów w gotówce, zakładając, że NJOY okaże się łatwiejszym sposobem na wykorzystanie kategorii e-papierosów, ponieważ sześć produktów firmy otrzymało pełną aprobatę amerykańskiej Agencji ds. Żywności i Leków.

https://www.investing.com/news/stock-ma ... on-3027942

(Reuters) - The Chicago mayor's office said on Friday a $23.8 million settlement has been reached with Juul Labs Inc over claims that the e-cigarette maker deceptively marketed its products and for selling vaping products to underage users.

The once red-hot vaping company is currently facing thousands of lawsuits filed across the United States over claims on its marketing practices and for contributing to a rising tobacco use amongst youth.

In the settlement, Chicago said Juul has denied and continues to deny any wrongdoing and liability in connection with the design, manufacture, production, advertisement, marketing, distribution, sale, use, and performance of its products.

A Juul spokesman said in an emailed statement that the settlement with Chicago is another step in the company's ongoing commitment to resolve issues from the past and transition adult smokers away from combustible cigarettes while combating underage use of its products.

According to the settlement, the company has agreed to pay the city $2.8 million within 30 days of the execution of the agreement.

Chicago would receive an additional $21 million payment later this year under the current schedule and may potentially receive up to $750,000 additional, court-awarded payments, the Chicago mayor's office said.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) Inc, which had a stake in Juul valued at $12.8 billion in 2018, on Monday exchanged its investment in Juul, last valued at $250 million, for some of the vaping company's heated tobacco intellectual property.

Altria said it would buy startup NJOY Holdings Inc for about $2.75 billion in cash, betting that NJOY will prove to be an easier way to tap the e-cigarette category since six of the company's products have received full approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

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Cigarette giant Altria Group considers non-nicotine product expansion - WSJ

Altria Group (NYSE:MO), America's biggest cigarette company, is considering a move to expand into non-nicotine products, according to a report by The Wall Street Journal on Friday.

The company is looking to move into less harmful products after "a string of failures," the report states. The company has an array of heated-tobacco devices, e-cigarettes, and oral nicotine pouches in the works, as well as the planned acquisition of NJOY Holdings Inc.

The company is aiming to take its reduced-risk products abroad and is looking at expanding into non-nicotine offerings such as cannabis products and caffeine pouches.

Altria has also set volume and revenue goals for its transition to smoke-free products, aiming to increase its smoke-free sales volume by at least 35% over the next five years and setting the goal of doubling its net revenue from smoke-free products to $5 billion by 2028, with $2B from new reduced-risk products.

The maker of Marlboro cigarettes announced Thursday that it has "aspirations to compete in the international innovative smoke-free and non-nicotine categories."

"We believe the international smoke-free and non-nicotine categories combined represent multi-billion dollar opportunities for us. Our teams are evaluating these opportunities and expect to finalize strategies for these growth areas over the next 12 months," the company said.

https://www.investing.com/news/stock-ma ... SI-3039556

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Juul to pay $462 million to six US states, D.C. over youth addiction claims

NEW YORK (Reuters) -E-cigarette maker Juul Labs Inc agreed on Wednesday to pay $462 million over eight years to settle claims by six U.S. states including New York and California, along with the District of Columbia, that it unlawfully marketed its addictive products to minors.

The deal, which also included Colorado, Illinois, Massachusetts and New Mexico, means that San Francisco-based Juul has now settled with 45 states for more than $1 billion, putting most of the long-running litigation over its business practices to rest. The company did not admit wrongdoing in the settlement.

The various states had accused Juul of falsely marketing its e-cigarettes as less addictive than cigarettes and targeted minors with glamorous advertising campaigns.

"Juul's lies led to a nationwide public health crisis and put addictive products in the hands of minors who thought they were doing something harmless," New York Attorney General Letitia James said at a news conference.

"Today is another step forward in our fight to protect our kids from getting hooked on vaping and nicotine," California Attorney General Rob Bonta added.

Juul said in a statement that use of its products by people under age 18 has fallen by 95% since the fall of 2019, when it changed its marketing practices as part of a "company-wide reset."

"With this settlement, we are nearing total resolution of the company's historical legal challenges and securing certainty for our future," the company said.

While Juul continues to sell its e-cigarettes in tobacco and menthol flavors, with limited advertising, its market share has fallen from a once-commanding 75% in 2018 to less than 30%.

Wednesday's settlement was negotiated by the states and District of Columbia as a group but stems from separate lawsuits they filed against the company.

Juul is still facing a lawsuit by Minnesota, where a trial is currently underway, as well as lawsuits or open investigations by Florida, Michigan, Maine and Alaska. It previously reached a $439 million settlement with 34 states and territories, as well as settlements with several individual states.

In addition to the state settlements, the company last year agreed to pay $1.7 billion to settle thousands of lawsuits by local government entities and individual consumers.

Under pressure from regulators, Juul in 2019 pulled most of its flavors from the market and halted much of its advertising. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration last June briefly banned the products, though the agency put the ban on hold and agreed to reconsider the action after the company appealed.

Juul's former largest investor, Marlboro cigarette maker Altria Group (NYSE:MO) Inc, is also facing claims over its alleged role in marketing Juul's e-cigarettes, and has not settled.

Altria last month announced that it had given up its investment in Juul in exchange for some of Juul's intellectual property. As of December, its share of Juul was valued at $250 million, down from $12.8 billion in 2018.

The head of the FDA's center for tobacco products said last year that adolescent e-cigarette use in the United States remained at "concerning levels" and posed a serious public health risk. Federal health officials said last October that an estimated 2.55 million U.S. middle and high school students reported using e-cigarettes during a four-month span earlier in 2022.

Most e-cigarettes contain nicotine, the addictive substance present in regular cigarettes, cigars and other tobacco products, and nicotine in adolescence can harm the parts of the brain that control attention, learning, mood and impulse control, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC also has said using nicotine in adolescence may raise the risk for future addiction to other drugs.

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A Stock with an 8% Yield and an 8.8 Forward P/E… Remarkable!
by Jason Fieber, Mr. Free at 33 • April 15, 2023
Altria Group (MO) is one of the world’s largest tobacco companies. This is a “sin” stock. Works for some. Not for others. And that’s okay. Me? I’m a fan of personal freedoms.

If an adult chooses to buy and consume a legal product, more power to them. And I’m happy to profit from that. Well, profit Altria does. And they return most of that profit back to their shareholders in the form of a massive dividend.

Altria’s stock is yielding 8.5%. The stock can move sideways and still earn an 8.5% annual return. As long as it doesn’t decline much, you’ve got a pretty nice floor on your return, based on just the dividend alone.

You’re not going to get much growth here, though. This is a mature business selling a product in secular decline. It’s a bit of a melting ice cube in some ways, but the ice cube is huge and appears to have many more years of melting in front of it before it’s in danger of disappearing. That’s been true for decades already, as evidenced by Altria’s 53 consecutive years of dividend increases, making it a rare Dividend King.

The 10-year DGR is 8.1%, although more recent dividend raises have been in the 4% range. The 74.5% payout ratio, based on FY 2023 guidance for adjusted EPS at the midpoint, is high and constrains the dividend growth, but Altria has been navigating a high payout ratio for many years.

https://dailytradealert.com/2023/04/15/ ... emarkable/

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Latest Release
Apr 27, 2023

EPS / Forecast
1.18 / 1.19

Revenue / Forecast
4.76B / 4.9B

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(Reuters) - Altria Group (NYSE:MO) Inc missed sales expectations for the first quarter on Thursday, as price-sensitive consumers switched to cheaper brands of cigarettes and smokeless tobacco products.

Hit by inflation, consumers have been trading down to affordable alternatives to the pricey traditional tobacco products that Altria sells, like the Marlboro brand family, which includes Special Select and Marlboro 72s.

Altria has been raising the prices of its cigarettes and smoke-free products to manage higher tobacco costs, driven by lingering industry-wide supply-chain challenges and exacerbated by the Russia-Ukraine crisis.

Analysts have struck a cautious note about the deteriorating price resistance towards Altria's cigarettes and the impact of the industry-wide decline in cigarette volumes on its margins.

The company's shipment volumes for smokable products fell by 11.1%, while peer Philip Morris International Inc (NYSE:PM) missed its quarterly sales estimates on lower cigarette shipment volumes.

Altria said its Marlboro retail share of the total cigarette category was 42.0%, a decrease of 0.6 share points versus the prior year, as consumers whose disposable income has already been stretched by high inflation have become mindful of spending their dollars.

The tobacco giant's revenue fell 1.2% to $4.76 billion in the quarter ended March 31 and missed analysts' average estimate of $4.90 billion, while adjusted earnings came in line with expectations of $1.18 per share, according to Refinitiv data.

The John Middleton cigar parent also recorded a non-cash, pre-tax loss of $250 million on the disposition of JUUL equity securities for the three months ended March 31.

The company's shares were down marginally in premarket trading.

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Altria agrees to $235 million settlement to resolve Juul-related cases

(Reuters) -Altria Group Inc said Wednesday that it will pay $235 million to settle at least 6,000 lawsuits accusing it of fueling a teen vaping epidemic through its former investment in e-cigarette maker Juul Labs Inc.

The deal ends nearly all of the litigation brought against the tobacco giant over Juul by local government bodies and individuals across the United States. It came shortly after San Francisco's public school district finished presenting its case against the company in a jury trial, which will now be cut short.

Sarah London, one of the lead attorneys for plaintiffs in the litigation, in a statement said the deal would "provide extraordinary and truly meaningful relief for youth, parents, and governmental organizations nationwide."

Altria (NYSE:MO) expects to record a pre-tax charge of $235 million in the second quarter of 2023 and intends to exclude it from adjusted earnings per share.

"While we continue to believe the claims against us are meritless, we believe this settlement avoids the uncertainty and expense of a protracted legal process and is in the best interest of our shareholders," said Murray Garnick, Altria's executive vice president and general counsel.

The company in March announced that it had given up its 35% stake in Juul in exchange for licenses to some of Juul's intellectual property. As of December, its share of Juul was valued at $250 million, down from $12.8 billion in 2018.

Plaintiffs in the lawsuits claimed that Juul marketed to teenagers with sweet flavors and flashy social media campaigns. They said Altria helped the strategy by letting Juul use its sales force and place its products next to Altria's on shelves.

Juul previously settled most of the cases against it, paying more than $1 billion to 48 states and territories and $1.7 billion to individuals and local government entities.

https://www.investing.com/news/stock-ma ... es-3079080

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Latest Release
Aug 01, 2023

EPS / Forecast
1.31 / 1.3

Revenue / Forecast
5.44B / 5.44B

Tobacco giant Altria Group (NYSE:MO) on Tuesday edged past Wall Street revenue and profit expectations, buoyed by demand for spitless nicotine pouches and higher pricing.

Altria, which has been raising prices to counter the defection of consumers to cheaper brands in the face of persistent inflation, has banked on demand for its premium offerings from the Marlboro brand of cigarettes, which it markets and sells in the U.S.

The company said Marlboro's share of the premium segment stands at 58.6%.

Altria, like peer Philip Morris (NYSE:PM), also benefited from strong demand for spitless nicotine pouches, which are an alternative to traditional moist chewing tobacco.

Shipment volumes for Altria's on! nicotine pouches grew 47.8% in the quarter from a year earlier.

In June, the company said it completed its acquisition of e-cigarette startup NJOY Holdings, adding pod-based vape NJOY ACE to its portfolio, at a time when consumers are increasingly looking for alternatives to traditional combustible cigarettes.

Net revenue rose 1.2% to $5.44 billion in the second quarter, compared with the average analyst estimate of $5.43 billion, as per Refinitiv data.

Excluding items, Altria reported quarterly profit of $1.31 per share, compared with Wall Street expectations of $1.30 per share.

The company reaffirmed its annual profit forecast which it had lowered in June to reflect planned investments NJOY ACE in the U.S. It sees annual adjusted profit between $4.89 and $5.03 per share, compared with an earlier forecast of $4.98 to $5.13.

https://www.investing.com/news/stock-ma ... es-3140498

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Juul plans to lay off 30% of workforce in cost-cut push - source

(Reuters) -Juul Labs is planning to lay off 30% of its workforce, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters on Wednesday, as the e-cigarettes maker aims to reduce its operating costs.

The restructuring is aimed at maximizing profitability and cash-flow generation, the company said in a statement, adding that it would substantially reduce its headcount to deliver on the company's strategy.

The e-cigarettes maker joins several companies across corporate America that have trimmed their workforce this year in a bid to rein in costs amid still-high inflation and rising interest rates.

Juul would lay off about 250 people, bringing its workforce down to around 650, the source said.

The Wall Street Journal had first reported on the news earlier on Wednesday.

Last year, the once red-hot vaping company had planned to lay off about 400 people and reduce its operating budget by 30% to 40% as part of a reorganization, staving off a possible bankruptcy filing.

The fresh round of job cuts would reduce operating expenses by $225 million, WSJ reported on Wednesday, citing a company spokesperson.

Juul has also been under pressure over the past year, as it has had to deal with lawsuits related to marketing of its e-cigarettes.

In April, the company had agreed to pay $462 million over eight years to settle claims by six U.S. states including New York and California, along with the District of Columbia, that it unlawfully marketed its addictive products to minors.

On Tuesday, Marlboro maker Altria Group (NYSE:MO) said that its unit NJOY has filed a complaint against Juul with the U.S. International Trade Commission, seeking a ban on the import and sale of Juul products.

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Altria Group, Inc. Boosts Dividend by 4.3% to $0.98 Quarterly per Share in 2023: 54 Years of Consistent Growth.

On August 25, 2023, renowned tobacco corporation Altria Group, Inc. (MO) announced a substantial 4.3% increase in their quarterly dividend, setting it at $0.98 per share. This noteworthy development signifies a remarkable streak of 54 consecutive years during which Altria has consistently elevated its dividend. Last year Altria hiked the dividend by 5.4%.

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Altria (NYSE: NYSE:MO), the parent company of Philip Morris (NYSE:PM) USA, experienced a 1.18% drop in its stock price to close at $42.61 on Friday, trailing behind the S&P 500's loss of 0.85%, Dow's loss of 0.75%, and Nasdaq's loss of 0.96%. Despite this recent downturn, Altria's shares have managed to gain 0.19% over the past month, demonstrating resilience against losses in the Consumer Staples sector (4.85%) and S&P 500 (3.02%).

The tobacco giant is scheduled to release its earnings on October 26, 2023. According to Zacks Consensus Estimates, the company is projected to report earnings of $1.29 per share, indicating a year-over-year growth of 0.78%. The revenue forecast stands at $5.48 billion, marking a growth of 1.25%.

For the full fiscal year, Altria's earnings are estimated to reach $4.95 per share, which would represent an increase of 2.27%. The company's annual revenue is projected to total $20.81 billion, up by 0.6% from the previous year.

Zacks currently ranks Altria as a #3 (Hold). The company trades at a forward price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 8.71, slightly lower than the industry average of 8.84. Its price/earnings to growth (PEG) ratio is reported to be 2.33, which is above the Tobacco industry average of 2.21.

According to InvestingPro data, Altria has a market cap of 75.62B USD and a P/E ratio of 11.2. The company's revenue for the last twelve months is reported at 20.58B USD, with a gross profit of 14.29B USD. Altria also boasts an impressive gross profit margin of 69.44% and an operating income margin of 58.34%.

InvestingPro Tips highlights Altria's high earnings quality, with its free cash flow exceeding net income. The company also has a record of consistently increasing earnings per share and a high shareholder yield. Of note is Altria's impressive track record of maintaining dividend payments for 53 consecutive years and it has raised its dividend for 13 consecutive years. These factors may be appealing to investors seeking stable returns.

Despite these strengths, it's important to note that Altria's revenue has been declining at an accelerating rate, according to InvestingPro Tips. Additionally, 4 analysts have revised their earnings downwards for the upcoming period, which may impact the company's performance.