Altria (MO, $48.44) forecasts slowing cigarette volumes, and hints at uncertainty over Juul
On Tuesday, Altria Group reported second-quarter adjusted earnings that was almost in line with analysts' expectations. However, the cigarette maker warned that cigarette sales declines are worsening, and also expressed current uncertainty on Juul’s international expansion.
Excluding special items such as litigation, costs associated with Altria's investment in Anheuser-Busch InBev and its stake in Canadian cannabis producer Cronos, Altria’s earnings came in at $1.10 a share for the quarter, almost matching the consensus estimate of analysts polled by FactSet.
The company's total sales climbed +5.5% year-over-year to $5.19 billion in the quarter, surpassing analysts’ expectations of $5.09 billion.
Altria also affirmed its projection of full-year adjusted earnings of between $4.15 and $4.27 a share.
However, the company indicated that U.S. cigarette volumes would decline between -5% and -6% this year, as cigarette smokers switch to e-cigarettes. Its prior forecast of the decline was -3.5% to -5%.
Altria also revised its expectations of total domestic cigarette industry volumes decline to -4% to -6% through 2023, compared to the previously forecast range of -4% to -5%. The company feels that part of this can be attributed to 18 states raising the permissible smoking age to 21.
Apparently in a bid to capitalize on the growing e-cigarette market, Altria invested $12.8 billion last year for a 35% stake in e-cigarrette startup Juul. Altria is hoping for Juul’s international growth to boost business, but Altria CEO Howard Willard said it’s “too soon” to judge the outcome. Meanwhile, e-smoking apparently continues to face scrutiny in various parts of the world for its burgeoning popularity among teenagers.
Other recent instances of product-portfolio diversification of the Marlboro-maker include its $1.8 billion investment for a 45% stake in Canadian cannabis company Cronos earlier this year , and its $372 million spending for oral nicotine pouch brand On.
Altria will also begin selling heated tobacco product iQOS, in the U.S. this summer. Philip Morris International will license the device to Altria. The Food and Drug Administration earlier this year gave its approval on iQOS sales in the U.S.
Contributor
Sergey Savastiouk, Ph.D. has a degree in Applied Mathematics from Moscow University and has extensive experience as an entrepreneur, investor, manager, and mathematician. His professional expertise is in applied mathematics, mathematical modeling, system and pattern analysis, and software and hardware system integration. He has served as the CEO of several hi-tech start-up companies and nonprofit organizations, which has given him proven capabilities in business strategy for high-tech start-up companies, market assessment, company formation, team building, product development, marketing, and sales. He has published numerous articles in journals and magazines on related fields. As a retail investor, he spent 15 years developing his proprietary trading and quantitative algorithms (now Tickeron’s A.I.), which brought him significant returns in trading the stock market. His current work and goal in founding Tickeron is to bring professional, sophisticated stock market analysis capabilities to retail investors via an easy-to-use interface.
Momentum Indicator for MO turns positive, indicating new upward trend
MO saw its Momentum Indicator move above the 0 level on August 24, 2026. This is an indication that the stock could be shifting in to a new upward move. Traders may want to consider buying the stock or buying call options. Tickeron's A.I.dvisor looked at 80 similar instances where the indicator turned positive. In of the 80 cases, the stock moved higher in the following days. The odds of a move higher are at .
Technical Analysis (Indicators)
Bullish Trend Analysis
The RSI Indicator points to a transition from a downward trend to an upward trend -- in cases where MO's RSI Oscillator exited the oversold zone, of 24 resulted in an increase in price. Tickeron's analysis proposes that the odds of a continued upward trend are .
The Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) for MO just turned positive on August 21, 2026. Looking at past instances where MO's MACD turned positive, the stock continued to rise in of 46 cases over the following month. The odds of a continued upward trend are .
Following a 3-day Advance, the price is estimated to grow further. Considering data from situations where MO advanced for three days, in of 390 cases, the price rose further within the following month. The odds of a continued upward trend are .
MO may jump back above the lower band and head toward the middle band. Traders may consider buying the stock or exploring call options.
Bearish Trend Analysis
The Stochastic Oscillator demonstrated that the ticker has stayed in the overbought zone for 7 days. The longer the ticker stays in the overbought zone, the sooner a price pull-back is expected.
MO moved below its 50-day moving average on July 30, 2026 date and that indicates a change from an upward trend to a downward trend.
The 10-day moving average for MO crossed bearishly below the 50-day moving average on August 04, 2026. This indicates that the trend has shifted lower and could be considered a sell signal. In of 16 past instances when the 10-day crossed below the 50-day, the stock continued to move higher over the following month. The odds of a continued downward trend are .
Following a 3-day decline, the stock is projected to fall further. Considering past instances where MO declined for three days, the price rose further in of 62 cases within the following month. The odds of a continued downward trend are .
The Aroon Indicator for MO entered a downward trend on August 26, 2026. This could indicate a strong downward move is ahead for the stock. Traders may want to consider selling the stock or buying put options.
Fundamental Analysis (Ratings)
The Tickeron SMR rating for this company is (best 1 - 100 worst), indicating very strong sales and a profitable business model. SMR (Sales, Margin, Return on Equity) rating is based on comparative analysis of weighted Sales, Income Margin and Return on Equity values compared against S&P 500 index constituents. The weighted SMR value is a proprietary formula developed by Tickeron and represents an overall profitability measure for a stock.
The Tickeron Profit vs. Risk Rating rating for this company is (best 1 - 100 worst), indicating low risk on high returns. The average Profit vs. Risk Rating rating for the industry is 66, placing this stock better than average.
The Tickeron Valuation Rating of (best 1 - 100 worst) indicates that the company is slightly undervalued in the industry. This rating compares market capitalization estimated by our proprietary formula with the current market capitalization. This rating is based on the following metrics, as compared to industry averages: P/B Ratio (0.000) is normal, around the industry mean (19.431). P/E Ratio (14.629) is within average values for comparable stocks, (23.874). Projected Growth (PEG Ratio) (2.662) is also within normal values, averaging (3.799). Dividend Yield (0.061) settles around the average of (0.047) among similar stocks. MO's P/S Ratio (5.695) is slightly higher than the industry average of (2.847).
The Tickeron PE Growth Rating for this company is (best 1 - 100 worst), pointing to outstanding earnings growth. The PE Growth rating is based on a comparative analysis of stock PE ratio increase over the last 12 months compared against S&P 500 index constituents.
The Tickeron Price Growth Rating for this company is (best 1 - 100 worst), indicating steady price growth. MO’s price grows at a higher rate over the last 12 months as compared to S&P 500 index constituents.
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General Information
a holding company which produces and markets tobacco products
Industry Tobacco
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