Earlier today, cigarette manufacturer and marketer Philip Morris International Inc. (PM) reported better-than-expected third-quarter results, benefiting from price increases in some markets. Earnings per share came in at 93 cents, 3 cents above the Zacks Consensus Estimate. On a year-over-year basis, Philip Morris’ earnings per share was flat (excluding a tax benefit of 8 cents in 2008), while net revenues declined 4.6% to $16.6 billion, attributable to unfavorable currency translations and weak results in the European Union (EU), Eastern Europe and Middle East & Africa (EEMA) markets. Revenue, Volumes & Margins On an organic basis (excluding currency and acquisitions), revenues increased 4.1% driven by favorable pricing. Cigarette volume was down almost 3% year-over-year to 219.3 billion units, mainly because of declines in EU, EEMA and Asia. The first two regions were adversely affected by the economic crisis (especially in Spain and Ukraine) and unfavorable comparisons ...

Cash Flow Is Key… When it comes to evaluating the safety of a dividend, the first thing we need to verify - given the current economic slowdown - is demand for a company’s products. After all, a company needs to generate a steady stream of cash in order to keep paying its shareholders.

But this dividend stock is ideally suited to weather the economic mess and is well capable of bolstering your income.

Look no further than Philip Morris International, Inc. (NYSE: PM).

Repeat Business… No Matter What The Economy Is Doing

I’m going to give you 10 reasons why Philip Morris’s dividend-paying capability is so solid.

And given that consistent business is so crucial to a company’s cash flow generation, it’s no surprise to see that the first three reasons all focus on the firm’s rock-solid demand…

1. Recessions Don’t Matter: As you might suspect, addictive products tend to enjoy the steadiest demand. In fact, based

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Dividend Investing: Buy This Dividend Paying Stock Before July 23…

by Louis Basenese, Advisory Panelist

Last week, I provided my six-step strategy to avoid the dividend investing trap and find stable, high-yield dividends. Today, the rubber hits the road…

If you’re looking for a dividend paying stock to bolster your income - one ideally suited to weather the current economic mess - look no further than Philip Morris International, Inc. (NYSE: PM).

10 Reasons This Dividend Won’t Go Up in Smoke

When it comes to evaluating the safety of a dividend paying stock, the first thing we need to verify - given the current economic slowdown - is demand for a company’s products. After all, a company needs a steady stream of cash coming in to afford to pay it out to shareholders. So, the first three reasons, understandably, pertain to Philip Morris’ rock-solid

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Chairman John Roberts, an Executive Director of Macquarie, has been the Global Head of Macquarie Capital Funds since August 2003. Joining the company in 1991, he is both Joint Head of the Macquarie Capital Advisers division and directly responsible for the Macquarie Capital Funds group. In addition to Macquarie, Mr. Roberts is a director of a number of listed and unlisted entities around the world that manage infrastructure investments.

Alternate Chairman Stephen Mentzines is an Executive Director of Macquarie and Head of Macquarie Capital Funds operations in North America. Prior to heading the North American operations, Mr. Mentzines was Global Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Macquarie Capital Funds. His responsibilities included new fund development, capital raisings and management, asset management, operations, finance, legal, compliance, tax, structuring, investor relations, communications and public affairs activities.

Director Norman Brown is currently a Member and Senior Managing Director of Brock Capital Group LLC. Prior to that,

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Philip Morris International Inc. (PM) rose marginally in morning trade to move past a short-term level of resistance at $36.24. The consensus estimate on the company's full-year earnings has gone up by 2 cents per share to $2.99 in the past week. The most accurate estimate, however, is more bullish at $3.02 a share. Philip Morris is a Zacks#2 Rank ("Buy") stock.

Zacks Investment Research

Today we are featuring top-performing "aggressive growth" equity mutual funds that invest higher-risk equity securities or seek maximum growth without any particular income or time limitations.

Investors can find such funds by checking out the entire list of the Zacks #1 Rank Aggressive Growth Equity Funds list.

3 Solid Picks

Alger Spectra A (SPECX) was incepted in September 1968. The fund seeks long-term capital appreciation by focusing on companies of all market capitalization that have growth potential.

The fund invests in equity securities, like common or preferred stocks, or securities convertible or exchangeable for equity securities, including warrants and rights, primarily in companies whose securities are traded on domestic stock exchanges or in the over-the-counter market. It may engage in selling stocks short.

The fund's key holdings include Philip Morris International Inc. (PM), Microsoft Corp. (MSFT)

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Philip Morris International Inc. (PM) announced first-quarter profit that topped analysts' expectations, and also backed its 2009 earnings guidance.

The cigarette maker's earnings of 74 cents per share were 5 cents ahead of the consensus, as results were boosted by its Asian, Latin American and Canadian markets. Revenue came in at $5.6 billion.

The company's total shipment volume of 203.4 billion units in the quarter was unchanged.

Philip Morris sees full-year earnings between $2.85 and $3 per share. Earlier in February, the company indicated that the firmer dollar would reduce earnings by 80 cents per share this year.

The last month has seen 3 out of 13 covering brokerage analysts raise their expectations, pushing the 2009 average earnings forecast up 2 cents to $2.96 per share. Next-year's estimate advanced to $3.33 from $3.30 in the same period.

Shares of this Zacks #2 Rank ("Buy") company are slightly higher

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Philip Morris International Inc. (PM) has a history of strong operating and financial performance. Management has a credible strategy of growing EPS in the range of 10% to 12% and returning a substantial portion of the company's cash flow to shareholders.

However, PMI has experienced an adverse mix shift as lower margin markets have grown faster than the company's average. In addition, the company is exposed to risks from litigation and increased smoking restrictions. The Hold rating is maintained.

The stock of Philip Morris International has only been trading since the end of March 2008. Having followed the tobacco industry for two decades, PMI's stock should trade at a slight premium to Altria's stock, which has traded in a P/E multiple range of 6 to 18 over the last 10 years. We expect PMI's stock to trade in a P/E multiple range of 8 to 15. The target

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a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_T9VXVyuEITg/SUNq1diWT3I/AAAAAAAAAmk/bSjmELRaRnY/s1600-h/Cigarette.jpg"img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 231px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_T9VXVyuEITg/SUNq1diWT3I/AAAAAAAAAmk/bSjmELRaRnY/s320/Cigarette.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5279180654902660978" //abr /Now that Barrack Obama is the president-elect, the United Stated will have the first smoking president in many years. Although he has made plans to quit smoking, he admits that he still hasn't yet stopped entirely. Will this have an effect on the consumption of cigarettes and tobacco? If you think so, and you have no objection to investing in cigarette stocks, you may want to consider the tobacco companies, especially because of their extremely high yields.br /br /Vector Group Ltd. (VGR) is a Florida based company that has numerous brands of cigarettes including Liggett, Grand Prix, Eve, Pyramid, USA and nicotine-free Quest. The stock has a PE of 15 a PEG of 1.25, and pays a yield of 11.7%.br /br /Reynolds American Inc. (RAI) makes and markets cigarettes and other ...