We use cookies to understand how you use our site and to improve your experience.
This includes personalizing content and advertising.
By pressing "Accept All" or closing out of this banner, you consent to the use of all cookies and similar technologies and the sharing of information they collect with third parties.
You can reject marketing cookies by pressing "Deny Optional," but we still use essential, performance, and functional cookies.
In addition, whether you "Accept All," Deny Optional," click the X or otherwise continue to use the site, you accept our Privacy Policy and Terms of Service, revised from time to time.
You are being directed to ZacksTrade, a division of LBMZ Securities and licensed broker-dealer. ZacksTrade and Zacks.com are separate companies. The web link between the two companies is not a solicitation or offer to invest in a particular security or type of security. ZacksTrade does not endorse or adopt any particular investment strategy, any analyst opinion/rating/report or any approach to evaluating individual securities.
If you wish to go to ZacksTrade, click OK. If you do not, click Cancel.
Can Altria's Smoke-Free Push Finally Drive Long-Term Growth?
Read MoreHide Full Article
Key Takeaways
Altria expanded on! PLUS to about 120,000 stores, covering roughly 90% of nicotine product volume.
On! retail share reached 8.6% in Q2, up sequentially and year over year, driven by on! PLUS.
Altria plans national 12-mg expansion in Q3 and new on! PLUS flavors across three strengths in Q4.
Altria Group, Inc.’s (MO - Free Report) smoke-free strategy is increasingly centered on nicotine pouches, with on! PLUS emerging as a key part of that effort. In the second quarter of 2026, Helix expanded on! PLUS to about 120,000 stores, covering roughly 90% of nicotine product volume. The rollout is being supported by a broader retail program and additional line extensions.
The underlying category is also expanding. In the second quarter, the nicotine pouch category grew 8.1 share points and represented nearly 60% of the total oral tobacco category. For on!, reported shipment volume was 49.9 million cans, down 4.2% year over year, although first-half shipment volume rose 5.1%. The company attributed the second-quarter comparison partly to trade inventory movements and promotional activity in the prior-year period.
Retail performance offered another measure of the rollout. On! retail share reached 8.6% in the second quarter, up 0.8 percentage points sequentially and 0.3 percentage points from a year earlier, with the gain driven by on! PLUS. The next phase involves expanding product choice. 12-milligram on! PLUS shipments resumed in three states during the quarter, with national expansion planned for the third quarter. Additional flavors across 6-milligram, 9-milligram and 12-milligram strengths, starting with Blueberry Mint and Mango Pineapple, are planned for the fourth quarter.
Together, these developments show a smoke-free strategy built around wider distribution, a growing nicotine pouch category and a broader on! PLUS offering.
MO’s Nicotine Pouch Strategy Evolves Alongside PM and TPB
Philip Morris International Inc. (PM - Free Report) is also expanding its smoke-free portfolio through nicotine pouches, with ZYN now available in 60 markets. In the second quarter of 2026, Philip Morris reported ZYN shipments rose 1.8% to 2.9 billion pouches, while new 9mg and 11mg ZYN ULTRA variants began shipping. Philip Morris plans additional 1.5mg and 8mg dry variants in the third quarter.
Turning Point Brands, Inc. (TPB - Free Report) is also expanding its smoke-free portfolio through nicotine pouches, with Modern Oral net sales up 128% year over year to $68.4 million in the second quarter of 2026. While Modern Oral accounted for 48% of total revenues, up from 26% a year earlier, Turning Point Brands expanded retail distribution for FRE and ALP. Turning Point Brands expects chain-store count to increase 70% year over year by year-end.
Altria’s Price Performance, Valuation & Estimates
Shares of Altria have fallen 0.4% in the past three months against the industry’s growth of 5.1%.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
From a valuation standpoint, MO trades at a forward price-to-earnings ratio of 11.81X, down from the industry’s average of 15.55X.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for MO’s 2026 and 2027 earnings implies year-over-year growth of 4.8% and 3.2%, respectively.
View the Zacks #1 Rank List
Image: Bigstock
Can Altria's Smoke-Free Push Finally Drive Long-Term Growth?
Key Takeaways
Altria Group, Inc.’s (MO - Free Report) smoke-free strategy is increasingly centered on nicotine pouches, with on! PLUS emerging as a key part of that effort. In the second quarter of 2026, Helix expanded on! PLUS to about 120,000 stores, covering roughly 90% of nicotine product volume. The rollout is being supported by a broader retail program and additional line extensions.
The underlying category is also expanding. In the second quarter, the nicotine pouch category grew 8.1 share points and represented nearly 60% of the total oral tobacco category. For on!, reported shipment volume was 49.9 million cans, down 4.2% year over year, although first-half shipment volume rose 5.1%. The company attributed the second-quarter comparison partly to trade inventory movements and promotional activity in the prior-year period.
Retail performance offered another measure of the rollout. On! retail share reached 8.6% in the second quarter, up 0.8 percentage points sequentially and 0.3 percentage points from a year earlier, with the gain driven by on! PLUS. The next phase involves expanding product choice. 12-milligram on! PLUS shipments resumed in three states during the quarter, with national expansion planned for the third quarter. Additional flavors across 6-milligram, 9-milligram and 12-milligram strengths, starting with Blueberry Mint and Mango Pineapple, are planned for the fourth quarter.
Together, these developments show a smoke-free strategy built around wider distribution, a growing nicotine pouch category and a broader on! PLUS offering.
MO’s Nicotine Pouch Strategy Evolves Alongside PM and TPB
Philip Morris International Inc. (PM - Free Report) is also expanding its smoke-free portfolio through nicotine pouches, with ZYN now available in 60 markets. In the second quarter of 2026, Philip Morris reported ZYN shipments rose 1.8% to 2.9 billion pouches, while new 9mg and 11mg ZYN ULTRA variants began shipping. Philip Morris plans additional 1.5mg and 8mg dry variants in the third quarter.
Turning Point Brands, Inc. (TPB - Free Report) is also expanding its smoke-free portfolio through nicotine pouches, with Modern Oral net sales up 128% year over year to $68.4 million in the second quarter of 2026. While Modern Oral accounted for 48% of total revenues, up from 26% a year earlier, Turning Point Brands expanded retail distribution for FRE and ALP. Turning Point Brands expects chain-store count to increase 70% year over year by year-end.
Altria’s Price Performance, Valuation & Estimates
Shares of Altria have fallen 0.4% in the past three months against the industry’s growth of 5.1%.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
From a valuation standpoint, MO trades at a forward price-to-earnings ratio of 11.81X, down from the industry’s average of 15.55X.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for MO’s 2026 and 2027 earnings implies year-over-year growth of 4.8% and 3.2%, respectively.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Altria currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.