PM shares gained over 4% during pre-market trading. The stock has declined about 24% in the past 52 weeks, hurt by the increased crackdown on tobacco products.
For full year 2019, reported diluted earnings per share is forecast to be at least $5.37, representing a projected increase of at least 5.7%.
CEO André Calantzopoulos said, “We grew our international market share by 0.5 points to reach 28.4%, and maintained a stable share of the cigarette category, highlighting our ability to successfully manage our transition to reduced-risk products.”
Apart from the full year guidance, Philip Morris has announced three targets to be achieved between 2019 and 2021. These include net revenue currency-neutral CAGR of at least 5%, as well as Adjusted EPS currency-neutral CAGR of at least 8%.
The company also aims to achieve heated tobacco unit volume of 90-100 billion units by 2021.