Altria (MO) Tops Q3 Earnings, Revenue Miss, Reiterates View

Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) , the leading manufacturer of cigarettes and smokeless tobacco products in the United States reported third-quarter 2017 results, wherein earnings of 90 cents per share topped the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 87 cents. Also, the bottom line rose 9.8% year over year.

Earnings Estimate Revision: The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2017 has increased by a penny in the past 30 days. Further, in the trailing four quarters, excluding quarter under review, the company has outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate by an average of 0.1%.

Revenues: Altria’s revenues, net of excise taxes, dipped 1.3% to $5,123 million, and marginally missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $5,196 million.

Key Events: In August 2017, management announced 8.2% hike in its quarterly dividend to 66 cents per share. Altria paid roughly $1.2 billion as dividends in the third quarter and bought back 11.1 million shares worth nearly $759 million.

Guidance: Altria reiterated its 2017 adjusted earnings forecast in a range of $3.26-$3.32, up 7.5-9.5% from $3.03 reported in 2016.

Zacks Rank: Currently, Altria carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), which is subject to change following the earnings announcement. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Stock Movement: Altria shares jumped nearly 1% in the pre-market trading hours following the earnings release.

Check back later for our full write up on Altria’s earnings report!

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