Pricing, dollar help Philip Morris Intl profit

"So far we haven't seen the impact of inflationary pressure on our products," Chief Financial Officer Hermann Waldemer said on a conference call with investors. "Cigarettes in general can withstand such an environment better than many consumer products."

The company, which sells Marlboros outside the U.S., also raised its earnings forecast for this fiscal year.

Boosted by higher prices and the weaker dollar, Philip Morris International said quarterly profit rose to $1.82 billion, or 86 cents per share, from $1.48 billion, or 70 cents per share last year. Revenue, excluding excise taxes, was up 15 percent to $6.71 billion from $5.84 billion.

Thomson Financial said analysts had predicted a profit of 83 cents per share on revenue of $6.58 billion.

The company said it now expects earnings this year of $3.32 to $3.38 per share, up from $3.18 to $3.24 per share previously.

It is the second time this year Philip Morris International has raised its profit forecast, and it assumes profit growth of 19 percent to 21 percent, JPMorgan analyst Erik Bloomquist told investors. He said the company's strong performance in the first half implies that "potential further upgrades (are) possible."

Analysts expect a profit of $3.25 per share for the year, on average.

Philip Morris International Inc.--which has offices in Lausanne, Switzerland, and New York--was spun off from Altria Group Inc. on March 28. It also sells the L&M, Bond Street, Chesterfield and Lark brands.

All regions reported double-digit revenue and operating profit growth. The unit that includes Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Africa had 18.5 percent revenue growth, the EU had 15 percent growth, Latin America grew 13.8 percent, and Asia grew 11.3 percent.