Background and Basis of Presentation |
3 Months Ended | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Mar. 31, 2025 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Background and Basis of Presentation | Background and Basis of Presentation When used in these notes, the terms “Altria,” “we,” “us” and “our” refer to either (i) Altria Group, Inc. and its consolidated subsidiaries or (ii) Altria Group, Inc. only and not its consolidated subsidiaries, as appropriate in the context. ▪Background: At March 31, 2025, our wholly owned subsidiaries included Philip Morris USA Inc. (“PM USA”), which is engaged in the manufacture and sale of cigarettes in the United States; John Middleton Co. (“Middleton”), which is engaged in the manufacture and sale of machine-made large cigars and is a wholly owned subsidiary of PM USA; UST LLC (“UST”), which, through its wholly owned subsidiary U.S. Smokeless Tobacco Company LLC (“USSTC”), is engaged in the manufacture and sale of moist smokeless tobacco (“MST”) products; Helix Innovations LLC (“Helix”), which operates in the United States, and its foreign affiliates (“Helix International”), which operate in certain other countries, are engaged in the manufacture and sale of oral nicotine pouches; and NJOY, LLC (“NJOY”), which is engaged in the manufacture and sale of e-vapor products. In January 2025, the U.S. International Trade Commission (“ITC”) issued an exclusion order and cease-and-desist orders prohibiting the importation and sale of NJOY ACE (NJOY’s pod-based e-vapor product) in the United States, which became effective on March 31, 2025. For further discussion, see Note 14. Contingencies. Other wholly owned subsidiaries included Altria Group Distribution Company (“AGDC”), which provides sales and distribution services to our domestic operating companies, and Altria Client Services LLC (“ALCS”), which provides various support services to our companies in areas such as legal, regulatory, research and product development, consumer engagement, finance, human resources and external affairs. Our access to the operating cash flows of our subsidiaries consists of cash received from the payment of dividends and distributions, and the payment of interest on intercompany loans. At March 31, 2025, our significant subsidiaries were not limited by contractual obligations in their ability to pay cash dividends or make other distributions with respect to their equity interests. At March 31, 2025, we owned a 75% economic interest in Horizon Innovations LLC (“Horizon”), a joint venture with JTI (US) Holding, Inc., a subsidiary of Japan Tobacco Inc., which owned the remaining 25% economic interest. Horizon is responsible for the U.S. marketing and commercialization of heated tobacco stick products owned by either party. At March 31, 2025, Horizon had no products in the U.S. marketplace. At March 31, 2025, we had investments in Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV (“ABI”) and Cronos Group Inc. (“Cronos”). For further discussion of our investments, see Note 6. Investments in Equity Securities. ▪Share Repurchases: In January 2025, our Board of Directors (“Board of Directors” or “Board”) authorized a new $1.0 billion share repurchase program (“January 2025 share repurchase program”), which we expect to complete by December 31, 2025. At March 31, 2025, we had $674 million remaining under the January 2025 share repurchase program. The timing of share repurchases depends upon marketplace conditions and other factors, and the program remains subject to the discretion of our Board. In January 2024, our Board authorized a $1.0 billion share repurchase program that it increased to $3.4 billion in March 2024 (as increased, “January 2024 share repurchase program”). We subsequently entered into accelerated share repurchase (“ASR”) transactions under two separate agreements with bank counterparties (collectively, “ASR Agreements”) to repurchase shares of our common stock having an aggregate value of $2.4 billion (“Repurchase Price”). In the first quarter of 2024, we paid the Repurchase Price and received 46.5 million shares of our common stock, which represented an aggregate value of approximately 85% or $2,040 million of the Repurchase Price based on the closing price per share of our common stock on the date we entered into the ASR Agreements. At March 31, 2024, the remaining $360 million was recorded as a reduction in additional paid in capital on our condensed consolidated balance sheet. We funded the ASR transactions with proceeds from our sale of a portion of our investment in ABI (“ABI Transaction”). For further information on the ABI Transaction, see Note 6. Investments in Equity Securities. The ASR transactions were accounted for as equity transactions and included in cost of repurchased stock on our condensed consolidated balance sheet when the shares were received. We completed the January 2024 share repurchase program in December 2024. Our share repurchase activity was as follows:
(1) At March 31, 2024, $360 million (15% of the Repurchase Price) remained as a reduction in additional paid in capital on our condensed consolidated statement of stockholders’ equity (deficit) until final settlement of the ASR transactions in the second quarter of 2024. ▪Basis of Presentation: Our interim condensed consolidated financial statements are unaudited. These interim condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared in conformity with United States generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”) and such principles are applied on a consistent basis. Certain information and footnote disclosures normally included in annual financial statements prepared in accordance with GAAP have been omitted. Our management believes that all adjustments necessary for a fair statement of the interim results presented have been reflected in our interim condensed consolidated financial statements. All such adjustments were of a normal recurring nature. Net revenues and net earnings for any interim period are not necessarily indicative of results that may be expected for the entire year. These condensed consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with our audited consolidated financial statements and related notes, which appear in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2024. Certain immaterial prior year amounts have been reclassified to conform with the current year’s presentation. For a description of issued accounting guidance applicable to, but not yet adopted by, us, see Note 15. New Accounting Guidance Not Yet Adopted.
|