Altria (MO) Financial Report Summaries

Risks

• We may be unsuccessful in anticipating and responding to changes in adult tobacco consumer preferences and purchase behavior, including as a result of difficult economic conditions, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, cash flows or financial position.
• We face significant competition, and our failure to compete effectively could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, cash flows or financial position and our ability to achieve our Vision.
• We may be unsuccessful in commercializing innovative products, including tobacco products with reduced health risks relative to certain other tobacco products and that appeal to adult tobacco consumers, which may have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, cash flows or financial position and our ability to achieve our Vision.
• Failure to complete or manage strategic transactions, including acquisitions, dispositions, joint ventures and investments in third parties, or realize the anticipated benefits of such transactions, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial position and our ability to achieve our Vision.
• Significant changes in price, availability or quality of tobacco, other raw materials or component parts could have a material adverse effect on our profitability and business.
• Our operating companies rely on a few significant facilities and a small number of key suppliers, distributors and distribution chain service providers, and an extended disruption at a facility or in service by a supplier, distributor or distribution chain service provider could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, cash flows or financial position.
• We may be required to write down intangible assets, including trademarks and goodwill, due to impairment, which could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations or financial position.
• We could decide, or be required to, recall products, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, reputation, results of operations, cash flows or financial position.
• We face various risks related to health epidemics and pandemics, and such events, and the measures that international, federal, state and local governments, agencies, law enforcement and health authorities implement to address them, could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, cash flows or financial position.
• We may be unable to attract and retain a highly skilled and diverse workforce due to the decreasing social acceptance of tobacco usage, tobacco control actions and other factors, which could have a material adverse effect on our business and our ability to achieve our Vision.
• Unfavorable outcomes with respect to litigation proceedings or any governmental investigations could materially adversely affect our results of operations, cash flows or financial position and our ability to achieve our Vision.
• Significant federal, state and local governmental actions, including FDA regulatory actions and inaction, and various private sector actions may continue to have a material adverse impact on our operating companies’ sales volumes and our business.
• Tobacco products are subject to substantial taxation, and any increases in tobacco product-related taxes could have a material adverse impact on sales of our operating companies’ products.
• International business operations subject us to various U.S. and foreign laws and regulations, and violations of such laws or regulations could result in reputational harm, legal challenges and significant penalties and other costs.
• A challenge to our tax positions, an increase in the income tax rate or other changes to federal or state tax laws could materially adversely affect our earnings or cash flows.
• Legal and regulatory requirements related to climate change and other environmental sustainability matters could have a material adverse impact on our business and results of operations.
• Disruption and uncertainty in the credit and capital markets could materially adversely affect our business.
• A downgrade or potential downgrade of our credit ratings could adversely impact our borrowing costs and access to credit and capital markets, which could materially adversely affect our financial condition.
• We may be unable to attract investors due to increasing investor expectations of our performance relating to corporate responsibility factors.
• The failure of our, or our service providers’, key suppliers’ or trade customers’, information systems to function as intended, or cyber-attacks or security breaches, could have a material adverse effect on our business, reputation, results of operations, cash flows or financial position.
• Our failure, or the failure of our service providers, key suppliers or trade customers, to comply with personal data protection, privacy, artificial intelligence and information security laws could materially adversely affect our business.
• The expected benefits of our investment in ABI may not materialize in the expected manner or timeframe or at all, which could have a material adverse impact on our financial position or earnings.
• Our investment in Cronos subjects us to certain risks associated with Cronos’s business, including legal, regulatory and reputational risks.