Altria Group Beats on Both Top and Bottom Lines

Altria Group (NYSE: MO  ) reported earnings on Jan. 31. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended Dec. 31 (Q4), Altria Group beat expectations on revenues and beat slightly on earnings per share.

Compared to the prior-year quarter, revenue grew slightly and GAAP earnings per share grew significantly.

Gross margins shrank, operating margins dropped, net margins grew.

Revenue details
Altria Group logged revenue of $4.46 billion. The seven analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ wanted to see net sales of $4.34 billion on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 2.6% higher than the prior-year quarter's $4.35 billion.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Dollar amounts in millions. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

EPS details
EPS came in at $0.55. The 12 earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ averaged $0.54 per share. GAAP EPS of $0.55 for Q4 were 34% higher than the prior-year quarter's $0.41 per share.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

Margin details
For the quarter, gross margin was 53.4%, 140 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 39.9%, 280 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 24.7%, 550 basis points better than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $4.04 billion. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.53.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $17.65 billion. The average EPS estimate is $2.38.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a four-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 8,632 members out of 8,959 rating the stock outperform, and 327 members rating it underperform. Among 2,206 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 2,170 give Altria Group a green thumbs-up, and 36 give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Altria Group is outperform, with an average price target of $35.31.

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