Can This Stock Double Your Money by 2030?

Over the last five years, Altria’s share price climbed by just over 50%, but that’s only part of the story. When you factor in dividends, a payout the company has raised for 55 consecutive years, total returns swell to over 120%.

That streak includes 59 separate payout bumps, and with today’s yield hovering around 6.36%, management has every incentive to keep the tradition alive. Few S&P 500 companies have a dividend track record this unbroken, which is one reason income-focused investors keep coming back.

Key Points

• 55 years of payout hikes and strong pricing have fueled over 120% total returns despite cigarette volume declines.

• Rapid gains in pouches and heated tobacco could reshape revenue and boost margins.

• Patents and U.S. pricing dominance support sustained EPS growth and potential for another five-year double.

How Altria Has Beaten the Odds

What’s surprising to many is that these returns have come even as cigarette volumes keep slipping. Altria has managed to offset those declines through pricing power, buybacks, and growing profit margins.

In the first half of 2025, for example, revenue slipped to $11.36 billion, but adjusted earnings per share actually climbed by over 7%. That’s a master class in margin management.

Management ability to raise prices without losing significant market share is a competitive edge that has outlasted countless regulatory challenges. Combined with share repurchases and efficiency gains, this approach has delivered consistent EPS growth despite top-line pressure.

Smokeless Products Could Shape the Next Chapter

The real wildcard for the next five years lies in Altria’s smokeless portfolio. While cigarettes still bring in the bulk of profits, nicotine pouches, heated tobacco, and other non-combustible products are gaining traction faster than many expected.

Investors tend to focus on Altria’s declining unit volumes in smokeable tobacco, but the pivot toward smokeless could eventually reshape its revenue mix, and Wall Street’s perception of the stock.

If this category continues to exceed expectations, it could be the growth engine that powers the company’s next leg up.

Recent Momentum and the Road Ahead

Shares are already up nearly 25% year-to-date, thanks in part to a stronger market backdrop and better-than-expected performance from smokeless offerings. That kind of rally makes doubling from here harder, but not impossible.

If Altria can continue expanding margins while growing its non-combustible business faster than analysts project, the company could surprise skeptics yet again. For investors who value dependable income and the potential for solid capital appreciation, Altria remains one of the rare consumer staples where the dividend alone could return half your capital in five years, and any multiple expansion or earnings growth is icing on the cake.

What Is Going By Unnoticed

While the market debates cigarette decline rates, two forces are working in Altria’s favor. First, patent-protected designs for newer nicotine pouches give the company a moat in a fast-growing category where margins can be even richer than traditional cigarettes. These protections aren’t widely discussed, but they could slow competitor encroachment and allow for years of premium pricing.

Second, Altria’s pricing power is unmatched in the U.S. consumer staples space. Unlike global peers, the company’s geographic concentration gives it an unusually strong read on consumer behavior and allows for precise, market-specific price increases.

Historically, these moves have more than offset volume declines, and that’s before considering cost savings from production efficiencies.

Together, these factors could help Altria generate high-single-digit annual earnings growth even if cigarette volumes fall faster than expected, keeping the possibility of another five-year double alive.