Altria Is Nearing a Deal to Take a 35% Stake in Juul
December 19 2018 - 12:28PM
Dow Jones News
By Dana Mattioli and Jennifer Maloney
Altria Group Inc. is nearing a deal to take a 35% stake in
e-cigarette startup Juul Labs Inc. at a roughly $38 billion
valuation, according to people familiar with the matter, an
investment that would make Juul one of the most valuable private
companies.
The $12.8 billion cash injection could be announced as soon as
this week. It would more than double what Juul was valued at just a
few months ago, a sign of how quickly the startup has been growing
and Altria's desire to find growth outside its shrinking cigarette
business. The Wall Street Journal earlier reported on the
discussions.
At $38 billion, three-year-old Juul would be worth more than
several well-known Silicon Valley startups, including Airbnb, the
home-sharing service, and Elon Musk's space venture SpaceX, and
nearly three times as much as Pinterest. Juul's valuation would be
on par with the market capitalization of public companies such as
Delta Air Lines Inc., Target Corp. and Ford Motor Co.
Juul, which has about 1,500 employees, was on track for $2
billion in annual revenue. It has outperformed its internal
forecasts from its funding round over the summer, according to a
person familiar with the matter. The company has profit margins as
high as 75%, the person added, which is much higher than
traditional tobacco.
Write to Dana Mattioli at dana.mattioli@wsj.com and Jennifer
Maloney at jennifer.maloney@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
December 19, 2018 13:13 ET (18:13 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2018 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
Altria (NYSE:MO)
Historical Stock Chart
From Apr 2024 to May 2024
Altria (NYSE:MO)
Historical Stock Chart
From May 2023 to May 2024