Shares of Altria Group Inc. MO,
Tuesday was up 0.5% in premarket trading, after the parent company of tobacco products Marlboro and Skoal reported a second-quarter profit that exceeded expectations, but revenue was lost, while increased its quarterly dividend. Net income fell to $ 1.94 billion, or $ 1.04 per share, from $ 2.00 billion, or $ 1.07 per share, in the same period last year. Excluding non-recurring items, adjusted earnings per share reached $ 1.09, above the FactSet consensus of $ 1.06. Altria recorded charges of $ 50 million related to business disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Total revenue fell 3.6% to $ 6.37 billion, without the FactSet consensus of $ 6.50 billion, as smokable revenue fell 4.3% to $ 5.60 billion. Cigarette shipments fell 8.8% to 24.95 billion sticks, while Marlboro shipments decreased 8.4% to 21.79 billion sticks. Altria expects a 2020 adjusted EPS of $ 4.21 to $ 4.38, around the FactSet consensus of $ 4.30. The company increased its quarterly dividend to 86 cents per share from 84 cents, with the new dividend payable on October 9 to shareholders of record on September 15. Altria shares have fallen 15.6% so far this year through Monday, while the S&P 500 SPX,
It has gained 0.3%.
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