Altria reports flat Q4 earnings, issues 2026 guidance

Investing.com -- Altria Group (NYSE: MO) reported fourth-quarter adjusted earnings that remained flat year-over-year at $1.30 per share, slightly missing analyst expectations of $1.32, while revenue net of excise taxes declined 0.5% to $5.08 billion, exceeding the consensus estimate of $5.02 billion.

The tobacco giant's shares edged down 0.21% following the release of results that showed continued pressure on cigarette volumes. For the fourth quarter, Altria's smokeable products segment reported a 7.9% decrease in domestic cigarette shipment volume, primarily driven by industry decline and trade inventory movements. When adjusted for these factors, the company estimated the total domestic cigarette industry volume decreased by approximately 6.5%.

"2025 was a year of continued momentum for Altria, marked by strong financial performance, strategic progress across our smoke-free portfolio, new relationships in support of our long-term growth goals and significant cash returns to shareholders," said Billy Gifford, Altria's Chief Executive Officer. "For the full year, we grew adjusted diluted earnings per share by 4.4% and returned $8 billion to shareholders through dividends and share repurchases combined."

For the full year 2025, Altria reported adjusted diluted EPS of $5.42, representing a 4.4% increase from the previous year, while net revenues decreased 3.1% to $23.3 billion.

Marlboro's retail share of the total cigarette category declined to 39.8% in the fourth quarter, down 1.5 percentage points year-over-year, as the industry's discount segment continued to gain share amid persistent discretionary income pressures on adult nicotine consumers.

In its oral tobacco products segment, Altria reported that on! nicotine pouches held a 7.7% share of the total U.S. oral tobacco category in the fourth quarter, down 1.0 percentage point versus the prior year.

Looking ahead, Altria expects to deliver 2026 full-year adjusted diluted EPS in a range of $5.56 to $5.72, representing growth of 2.5% to 5.5% from 2025. The company noted that earnings growth is expected to be weighted toward the second half of the year.

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