Altria Group

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Altria Group, Inc
Type Public
Founded Flag of the United Kingdom 1860 London, UK
Headquarters Henrico County, Virginia, USA
Key people Michael E. Szymanczyk, Chairman & CEO
David R. Beran, CFO
Industry Tobacco
Products See below
Revenue ▲$38.05 billion USD (2006) [1]
Net income ▲$9.16 billion USD (2006) [2]
Employees 199,000
Website www.altria.com

Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE: MO) (previously named Philip Morris Companies Inc.), based in Henrico County, Virginia, is the parent company of Philip Morris USA, John Middleton, Inc. and Philip Morris Capital Corporation, and is one of the world's largest tobacco corporations. In addition, Altria Group, Inc. has a 28.7% economic and voting interest in one of the world's largest brewing companies, UK based SABMiller plc. It is a component of the S&P 500 and was a component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average until February 19, 2008.

On January 27, 2003, Philip Morris Companies Inc. changed its name to Altria Group, Inc. On March 30, 2007, a spin out of Kraft Foods subsidiary (publicly traded since 2001) was concluded through distribution of the remaining stake of shares (88.1%) to Altria shareholders. As a result, Altria no longer holds any interest in Kraft Foods. On March 28, 2008 a similar spin out of Philip Morris International was completed with 100% of shares being distributed to Altria shareholders.

Contents

[edit] Holdings

Altria Group, Inc. owns 100 percent of Philip Morris USA, John Middleton, Inc. and Philip Morris Capital Corporation. It also owns 28.7% of SABMiller PLC.

Before the recent restructuring, the net revenue (and operating income) of Altria Group, Inc. came predominantly from its tobacco business, as is shown in the following table. Altria's share of SABMiller's revenue and profits is not included in the table below because its holding is too small to be consolidated in the group accounts. [1]

Activity Net revenue
in 2006
(millions USD)		 Net revenue
in 2006
(%)		 Operating
income
in 2006
(millions USD)		 Operating
income
in 2006
(%)
USA tobacco 18,474 18.2% 4,812 26.5%
International tobacco 48,260 47.6% 8,458 46.5%
North American food 23,118 22.8% 3,753 20.7%
International food 11,238 11.1% 964 5.3%
Financial services 317 0.3% 176 1.0%
Total 101,407 100% 18,163 100%

[edit] Philip Morris component

Altria's tobacco subsidiary, Philip Morris, is the world's largest commercial tobacco company by sales.[citation needed] Their flagship Marlboro is the world's most popular tobacco brand.[citation needed] Other] tobacco brands owned by Philip Morris are Parliament, Virginia Slims, and Benson & Hedges (licensed in some markets).

Philip Morris was founded by a London tobacconist of the same name. He was one of the first people to sell hand-rolled cigarettes in the 1860s, selling them under the brand names Oxford and Cambridge Blues, following the adoption of cigarette smoking by British soldiers returning from the Crimean War. The company opened its New York office in 1902 and soon became part of James Duke's American Tobacco Company monopoly.

In 2004 its Philip Morris USA division completed a move of its 682 New York based employees to Richmond, Virginia. Of the 682 offered relocation, only a handful accepted and relocated. Over 500 New York based employees accepted an early retirement or severance package and did not make the move to Richmond.[citation needed]

[edit] History

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[edit] Altria's history at a glance

[edit] Products

[edit] Tobacco

Philip Morris USA brands:

[edit] Corporate governance

[edit] Board of directors

Current members of the board of directors of Altria Group are:

[edit] Executive staff

  • Louis C. Camilleri, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Altria Group, Inc.
  • André Calantzopoulos, President and Chief Executive Officer, Philip Morris International Inc.
  • Michael E. Szymanczyk, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Philip Morris USA Inc
  • John J. Mulligan, President and Chief Executive Officer, Philip Morris Capital Corporation.

[edit] Political influence

According to the Center for Public Integrity, Altria spent around $101 million on lobbying the United States government between 1998 and 2004, making it the second most active organization in the nation. [5] [6]

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

[edit] References

  1. ^ US Securities and Exchange Commission, Altria Group, Inc. Annual report 2006
  2. ^ Altria "when-issued" shares set to trade
  3. ^ Philip Morris to close Concord plant, Charlote Business Journal
  4. ^ Altria moves headquarters from N.Y. to Va. today, Richmond Times-Dispatch, March 31, 2008
  5. ^ The Center for Public Integrity: Altria Group, Inc.
  6. ^ The Center for Public Integrity: Top 100 Companies and Organizations