The Major Long-Term Risk Facing Altria Stock in 2026
Over its history, Altria (NYSE: MO) has been one of the best-performing stocks on the market, returning 20% annually for much of that time thanks to strong dividend growth and the resilience and recession-proof nature of the tobacco sector.
Over the last decade, however, the stock's performance has been much more pedestrian as smoking rates in the U.S. continue to decline and the company's efforts to diversify away from cigarettes have mostly backfired. That includes its investments in Cronos Group and Juul Labs, which led to billions in losses, and, more recently, its acquisition of NJOY faced a setback when the U.S. International Trade Commission banned the sale of NJOY Ace devices and pods when it found that it had infringed on patents held by Juul.
Despite those challenges, Altria is up roughly 50% over the last two years, trending with a broader surge in tobacco stocks on promising signs for smoke-free products, including Altria's On! oral nicotine pouches.
Source Fool.com
