Altria Group Inc

Altria Group Inc. triggered one of the busiest days of trading in its shares in a year simply by announcing that it planned to disclose a timeline for the divestment of its majority stake in Kraft Foods Inc. This week, investors expect to learn details of the plan that created that late October burst of Wall Street activity. Analysts say it could call for breaking the food and tobacco company into as many as three parts.

Altria Group Inc., parent of cigarette maker Philip Morris and Kraft Foods Inc., said first- quarter profit increased less than 1%, hurt by costs to close Kraft factories and fire workers. Net income rose to $2.19 billion, or $1.07 a share, from $2.17 billion, or $1.07, a year ago, the New York-based company said. Sales climbed 13% to $21.8 billion. Shares of Altria fell 12 cents to $56.33 on the NYSE.

Now that Altria is poised to jettison its Kraft Foods subsidiary, investors expect the payoff will be a higher share price as the company transforms into almost purely a tobacco company. New York-based Altria Group Inc., whose tobacco operations make the top-selling Marlboro cigarette brand, plans to spin off its majority stake in Kraft Foods Inc. in March.

The Supreme Court on Tuesday put new limits on large verdicts intended to punish corporate wrongdoers when it overturned a $79-million punitive jury award against cigarette maker Philip Morris. In a 5-4 opinion, the court said companies could not be punished for harm they might have inflicted on thousands of people based on a lawsuit brought on behalf of one person. Justice Stephen G.

Wall Street got more hints that Altria Group Inc., owner of the Philip Morris cigarette companies, may be closer to splitting its domestic and international divisions. Reporting that second-quarter income fell more than 18% on Wednesday, the New York-based company also provided more financial information than usual for its Philip Morris International unit, a signal to analysts that it might be preparing for the long-awaited split. Altria Chief Financial Officer Dinyar S.

Altria Group Inc. plans to spin off its Philip Morris International tobacco unit, a move designed to give the overseas maker of Marlboros and other cigarette brands more freedom to pursue sales growth in emerging markets. The plans announced Wednesday would leave Altria with its much smaller domestic tobacco business that nonetheless still ranks as the biggest in the United States.

A California appeals court Friday upheld a $28-million punitive damage award against Altria Group Inc.'s Philip Morris USA Inc. in the case of a longtime smoker who died three years ago. The ruling comes in the case of Betty Bullock, who was awarded $28 billion by an L.A. jury in 2002; the award was reduced to $28 million by the trial judge.

Investors who have been salivating at the prospect of an Altria Group Inc. breakup may not have much longer to wait now that a federal judge has handed down a much-anticipated racketeering decision. "OK, now pop the cork!" analyst Christopher Growe of A.G. Edwards & Sons wrote in a research note Friday. Citigroup Inc. analyst Bonnie Herzog wrote in her note, "Get ready for Altria to move the cheese," in reference to its long-planned spinoff of Kraft Foods Inc.

Profit slipped in the third quarter for the parent of the nation's biggest tobacco company while earnings climbed 45% for its biggest rival. But revenue rose for both companies and so did their shares. Industry leader Altria Group Inc., the parent of Marlboro maker Philip Morris, also announced Wednesday that its board would meet in January to nail down plans for a long-awaited divestiture of its majority stake in Kraft Foods Inc., which makes Nabisco and Oscar Mayer products.

The U.S. Supreme Court refused Monday to revive a $10.1-billion award against Altria Group Inc.'s Philip Morris USA, rejecting an appeal from smokers who said they were misled about the health risks of "light" cigarettes. The justices, without comment, left intact an Illinois Supreme Court decision that threw out the case against Philip Morris, the nation's largest cigarette maker.