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Marlboro maker Altria’s 1Q profit falls on lower cigarette sales, year-ago comparison

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FILE - This April 23, 2008, file photo, shows the Altria Group Inc. corporate headquarters in Richmond, Va. Altria reports quarterly earnings on Thursday, April 24, 2014. (AP Photo/Steve Helber, File)

RICHMOND, Va. – Altria’s first-quarter profit dropped 15 per cent as the Marlboro maker sold fewer cigarettes and its year-ago results benefited lower expenses from a longstanding legal settlement.

The owner of the nation’s biggest cigarette maker, Philip Morris USA, posted earnings Thursday of $1.17 billion, or 59 cents per share. That’s down from $1.38 billion, or 69 cents a share, in the year-ago period.

Excluding one-time items, earnings were 57 cents per share, matching Wall Street expectations.

Altria Group Inc., based in Richmond, Va., said that revenue, excluding excise taxes, increased less than a per cent to $4.01 billion. Analysts polled by FactSet expected $4.03 billion.

Cigarette shipments fell 2.5 per cent to 29 billion cigarettes. Volumes of its premium Marlboro brand fell about 2 per cent. Smokeless tobacco volumes grew about 6 per cent.

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