It was tough week for Altria Group, Inc. (Public, NYSE:MO) shareholders but if there’s one thing Americans love it’s their cigarettes and booze, I know I love them. Yes sir, why it doesn’t get any more American than a pack of Marlboro’s and pint of MGD, that’s why investing in Altria Group makes so much sense.

Altria Group just spun off its overseas unit last month, and it’s stock was hurt this week by Q1 profit falling less than analysts estimated on demand for Marlboro cigarettes and cigars. Wah, another company misses the analysts estimates, cut/paste another week investing in the stock market.

Net income fell 11%to $2.45 billion, or $1.16 a share, due to costs related to the spinoff and the closing of its NY headquarters. Excluding those items, profit of 37 cents beat the average analyst estimate by 1 penny.

MO affirmed its previous profit forecast for the year of $1.63 to $1.67 a share. Fellow Masters, that works out to be an increase of as much as 11% 2007’s profit of $1.50. Sales for the period were $4.41 billion, up nearly 3% from $4.3 billion in the same quarter in 2007. Analysts had expected revenue of $3.83 billion

The new Altria Group consists mainly of its domestic cigarette unit Philip Morris USA, cigar manufacturer John Middleton Inc., Philip Morris Capital Corp. and a 29% stake in London-based SABMiller PLC (LON:SAB), brewer of Miller beer.

SABMiller PLC is a monster holding company, they manufacture, distribute and sell booze and soda in more than 60 countries across six continents. Its brands include international beers, such as Pilsner Urquell, Peroni Nastro Azzurro and Miller Genuine Draft, as well as a range of local brands, such as Aguila, Miller Lite, Snow and Tyskie. The Company is one of the bottlers of Coca-Cola products. The Company’s markets range from developed economies, such as North America to markets, such as China and India.

Buying shares of MO also gets you a stake in SABMiller, which is worth it considering Altria shares are trading right at its 52-week low around $20 to $22.

This past quarter was expensive to Altria because of the spin off and thanks to the Street dropping their shares, it makes for a great long term investing opportunity. I don’t care what latest report you read or story some paper runs about people smoking less. This guy right here, American Icon. Altria makes it cash selling products that will always be used and embraced by the majority of Americans — Booze and Cigarettes.

Disclaimer: The Author has no positions in any of the securities mentioned in this publication.

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