Philip Morris International Profit Falls

By Vinnee Tong

NEW YORK -- Cigarette maker Philip Morris International (PM Quote) said Wednesday that its fourth-quarter profit fell nearly 8% as the dollar's strength hurt profits.

The company that makes Marlboros for sale overseas also said its 2009 profit would be lower than last year's because of the currency effect.

Philip Morris International earned $1.45 billion, or 71 cents a share, in the quarter ended Dec. 31. That's down from $1.57 billion, or 74 cents a share, a year earlier. But it still beat Wall Street estimates. Thomson Reuters says analysts expected a profit of 62 cents a share.

The cigarette maker said revenue rose 2% to $15.22 billion in the quarter.

The company is the world's biggest non-governmental cigarette seller, smaller only than the state-controlled China National Tobacco Corp. It has offices in Lausanne, Switzerland, and New York.

Philip Morris International predicted it would earn 2009 profit in a range of $2.85 to $3 a share, at current exchange rates. It earned $3.32 a share in 2008, falling a penny short of analyst estimates. The company said it expected currency rates to dampen 2009 profits by 80 cents a share.

Last year, the company's net income rose 14% to $6.89 billion from $6.04 billion. In 2007, it earned $2.86. Revenue rose 15% to $63.64 billion in its first year as an independent company. It was spun off from Altria (MO Quote) in March 2008. Altria still owns Philip Morris USA, which sells Marlboros in the U.S.