Background and Basis of Presentation

6 Months Ended

Jun. 30, 2021

Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]

When used in these notes, the term “Altria,” refers to Altria Group, Inc. and its subsidiaries, unless the context requires otherwise.

▪Background: At June 30, 2021, Altria’s 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 pipe tobacco and is a wholly owned subsidiary of PM USA; UST LLC (“UST”), which through its wholly owned subsidiaries, including U.S. Smokeless Tobacco Company LLC (“USSTC”) and Ste. Michelle Wine Estates Ltd. (“Ste. Michelle”), is engaged in the manufacture and sale of moist smokeless tobacco products (“MST”), snus products and wine; Helix Innovations LLC (“Helix”), which operates in the United States and Canada, and Helix Innovations GmbH and its subsidiaries (“Helix ROW”), which operate internationally in the rest-of-world, are engaged in the manufacture and sale of on! oral nicotine pouches; and Philip Morris Capital Corporation (“PMCC”), which maintains a portfolio of finance assets, substantially all of which are leveraged leases.

Altria owns 100% of the global on! business as a result of transactions in December 2020 and April 2021 to purchase the remaining 20% interest in (i) Helix ROW and (ii) Helix, respectively. The total purchase price of the December 2020 and April 2021 transactions was approximately $250 million.

Other Altria wholly owned subsidiaries included Altria Group Distribution Company, which provides sales and distribution services to certain Altria operating subsidiaries, and Altria Client Services LLC, which provides various support services in areas such as legal, regulatory, consumer engagement, finance, human resources and external affairs to Altria and its subsidiaries. Altria’s access to the operating cash flows of its wholly owned subsidiaries consists of cash received from the payment of dividends and distributions, and the payment of interest on intercompany loans by its subsidiaries. At June 30, 2021, Altria’s significant wholly owned 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 June 30, 2021, Altria’s investments in equity securities consisted of Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV (“ABI”), Cronos Group Inc. (“Cronos”) and JUUL Labs, Inc. (“JUUL”). Altria accounts for its investments in ABI and Cronos under the equity method of accounting using a one-quarter lag. Altria accounts for its equity investment in JUUL under the fair value option.

For further discussion of Altria’s investments in equity securities, see Note 3. Investments in Equity Securities.

On July 8, 2021, UST entered into a Share Purchase Agreement pursuant to which UST agreed to sell its subsidiary, International Wine & Spirits Ltd. (“IWS”), which includes Ste. Michelle. For further discussion, see Note 13. Subsequent Event.

▪Share Repurchases: In July 2019, Altria’s Board of Directors (the “Board of Directors” or “Board”) authorized a $1.0 billion share repurchase program. In April 2020, the Board rescinded the $500 million remaining in this program as part of Altria’s efforts to enhance its liquidity position in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Altria did not repurchase any shares in 2020.

In January 2021, the Board authorized a new $2.0 billion share repurchase program. At June 30, 2021, Altria had $1,350 million remaining in this program. The timing of share repurchases under this program depends upon marketplace conditions and other factors, and the program remains subject to the discretion of the Board.

Altria’s share repurchase activity for the six and three months ended June 30, 2021 was as follows:


(in millions, except per share data)	For the Six Months Ended June 30, 2021		For the Three Months Ended June 30, 2021
Total number of shares repurchased	13.5		6.6
Aggregate cost of shares repurchased	$	650	$	325
Average price per share of shares repurchased	$	48.09	$	49.21

▪Basis of Presentation: The interim condensed consolidated financial statements of Altria are unaudited. It is the opinion of Altria’s management that all adjustments necessary for a fair statement of the interim results presented have been reflected in the 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.

Certain immaterial prior year amounts have been reclassified to conform with the current year’s presentation.

These statements should be read in conjunction with Altria’s audited consolidated financial statements and related notes, which appear in Altria’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020 (the “2020 Form 10-K”).

On January 1, 2021, Altria adopted Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) 2019-12, Income Taxes (Topic 740): Simplifying the Accounting for Income Taxes (“ASU No. 2019-12”). This guidance removes certain exceptions for investments, intraperiod allocations and interim calculations, and adds guidance to reduce complexity in accounting for income taxes. The adoption of ASU No. 2019-12 did not have a material impact on Altria’s condensed consolidated financial statements.

Additionally, on January 1, 2021, Altria adopted ASU No. 2020-01, Investments - Equity Securities (Topic 321), Investments - Equity Method and Joint Ventures (Topic 323), and Derivatives and Hedging (Topic 815): Clarifying the Interactions between Topic 321, Topic 323, and Topic 815 (“ASU No. 2020-01”). This guidance provides clarification of the interaction of rules for equity securities, the equity method of accounting, and forward contracts and purchase options on certain types of securities. The adoption of ASU No. 2020-01 did not have a material impact on Altria’s condensed consolidated financial statements.

For a description of issued accounting guidance applicable to, but not yet adopted by, Altria, see Note 12. New Accounting Guidance Not Yet Adopted.