MO Research

02Risk & quality

• Consistency 20.0/20 — MO has paid an uninterrupted dividend for 65 straight years, putting it in the Dividend King tier — the small US-listed club of 50+ year streaks. This dimension caps at 10 years, so anything past that sits well above the ceiling.
• Payout safety 10.0/20 — MO's GAAP earnings payout ratio is 87.7%, in the strained range. Most of current profit is going to the dividend, leaving little buffer if earnings dip. Above 100% would mean the company is paying from cash or debt rather than current profit.
• Moat 18.6/20 — Scores how protected MO's earnings stream is from competition. Operating in Consumer Defensive, MO benefits from the kind of brand pricing power, regulatory position, or scale that lets margins hold up through economic cycles. Cyclical or commodity-driven sectors typically score in the single digits here.
• Growth rate 7.3/20 — MO's dividend grew about 10.9% per year over 5 years — solid by absolute standards, but a notch below the 15-20% pace seen at growth-oriented dividend payers (think SCHD constituents). Familiar pattern for established staples already paying out most of what they earn — the runway for further hikes naturally narrows once payout ratios climb.
• Balance sheet 10.0/20 — A composite of return-on-equity and inverse leverage. MO's ROE leaves this dimension in the middle of the pack — neither flagged for weakness nor in the financial-flexibility tier of top-scoring names.

03Price reference

Below are statistical price references from the last 5 years of trading, anchored to historical drawdown events. They describe where the price has been — not where it should be.