Based on the aggregated intelligence of 180,000-plus investors participating in Motley Fool CAPS, the Fool's free investing community, global tobacco giant Philip Morris International
With that in mind, let's take a closer look at Philip Morris' business and see what CAPS investors are saying about the stock right now.
Philip Morris facts
| Headquarters (Founded) | New York (1987) |
| Market Cap | $133.2 billion |
| Industry | Tobacco |
| Trailing-12-Month Revenue | $30.5 billion |
| Management | Chairman/CEO Louis Camilleri (since 2008) CFO Hermann Waldemer (since 2008) |
| Return on Capital (Average, Past 3 Years) | 31.9% |
| Cash/Debt | $3.39 billion / $17.8 billion |
| Dividend Yield | 4% |
| Competitors |
British American Tobacco |
Sources: S&P Capital IQ and Motley Fool CAPS.
On CAPS, 98% of the 2,749 CAPS members who have rated Philip Morris believe the stock will outperform the S&P 500 going forward. These bulls include DooDeeHead and DanFPilot.
Earlier this fall, DooDeeHead touched on the tailwinds working in Philip Morris' favor:
[T]he world population is growing faster and faster every day. You know what that means: MORE SMOKERS! Marlboro is the number one smoked brand in the world for a reason, and it is why I will stick to Phillip Morris for now.
Philip Morris even boasts a robust three-year average operating margin of 41%. That's higher than that of other tobacco stocks like British American (32%) and Reynolds American
CAPS member DanFPilot elaborates on the ultra-long-term bull case:
[Philip Morris] is a very profitable company and it has already shown to be good at growing its earnings. It pays an excellent dividend. ... Smoking may be taboo here in the U.S. but in the rest of the world, not so much. ... I don't see smoking ever going away, at least not in the forseeable future. I am currently 39 and I plan to keep this stock until the day I die and will leave it to my daughter. I'm willing to bet that I will collect a whole lot of dividends that will consistently be increased. This stock along with other dividend stocks I own will provide a much better retirement income for me than Social Security ever will.
What do you think about Philip Morris, or any other stock for that matter? If you want to retire rich, you need to put together the best portfolio you can. Owning exceptional stocks is a surefire way to secure your financial future, and on Motley Fool CAPS, thousands of investors are working every day to find them. CAPS is 100% free, so get started!
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