Altria (NYSE: MO) is often considered a stable long-term investment for dividend investors. It's the largest tobacco company in America, its stock trades at just 9 times forward earnings, and it pays a hefty forward dividend yield of 8.8%.

Yet, Altria has generated dismal returns for those patient investors. Over the past five years, its stock has declined 22% and generated a total return of just 15% after including its reinvested dividends. During the same period, the S&P 500 advanced 83% and produced a total return of 99%.

Past performance isn't a dependable indicator of future results, but I believe it's still smarter to sell Altria's stock than to buy it for four simple reasons.

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Source Fool.com