Altria Group Inc (MO) Q2 Earnings Miss Estimates

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Altria Group Inc (NYSE:MO) released its earnings report for the three months ended June 30, 2013 this morning before the market opened. The company showed earnings of $62 cents per share on revenue of $4.5 billion for the three month period. Altria Group Inc (NYSE:MO shares closed at $36.88 per share on Monday’s market.

Altria Group Inc (MO) Q2 Earnings Miss Estimates

Altria Group’s Estimates

Analysts following Altria Group Inc (NYSE:MO) were looking for earnings per share of 63 cents heading into this earnings report, by consensus. Revenues were expected to amount to $4.62 billion for the three months period. In the same quarter of 2012, the company earned 59 cents per share on revenue of $4.6 billion.

Tobacco rising

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) operates in one of the most difficult markets out there at the moment, tobacco sales. The company has to deal with hundreds of different jurisdictions and their different regulations on their product, while at the same time having heavy restrictions placed on their advertising ability.

The Philip Morris USA owner is still predicted to expand its earnings in the years to come, however. After earning $2.21 per share in 2012 the company is expected to bring in $2.40 per share this year and $2.57 per share in 2014. Despite the difficulties of the market, things are looking good for the Altria Group (NYSE:MO).

Since the start of 2013 Altria Group (NYSE:MO) stock has gained just over 17 percent, just below the gains made in the S&P 500 in the same period. Those gains are certainly appreciated by the company’s shareholders after significant losses were seen in the company’s value in the second half of 2012.

Shares in the Altria Group (NYSE:MO) are trading just below the company’s 52 week high heading into the release of this morning’s earnings report. Tobacco is probably a dying industry over the longer term, but that doesn’t mean companies like Altria are useless to investors over the next couple of years. Investors would be unwise to ignore the company.

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