Altria falls with Philip Morris-Swedish Match deal seen as a potential headwind – Seeking Alpha

Altria (NYSE:MO -7.4%) slumped in Tuesday trading after Bernstein pulled its bull rating on the tobacco stock and with Philip Morris International (PM -0.8%) making an M&A play of note.

On Wall Street, Bernstein moved to a Market Perform rating from Outperform on a valuation call.

“With the stock trading at its highest absolute and relative multiple since 2018, we prefer to wait for a better entry point,” updated the Bernstein analyst team.

Altria has had a strong run in 2022 with investors latching on to it as a favorite consumer defensive play, but Philip Morris International’s (PM) potential deal to acquire Swedish Match AB (OTCPK:SWMAF) is seen as a blow to Altria (MO) if it closes as it could end the deal to market IQOS in the U.S.

See the valuation metrics on Altria.