, Columnist
Altria’s Juul Stake Is the Least It Could Do
The tobacco giant’s growth problems could be better fixed by buying the e-cigarette maker outright.
A Juul for Altria’s crown.
Photographer: Gabby Jones/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Altria Group Inc. has taken a $12.8 billion step toward making sure its business model doesn’t go up in smoke.
The maker of Marlboro cigarettes announced Thursday that it has taken a 35 percent stake in Juul Labs Inc., the U.S. market-share leader in e-cigarettes. The deal values Juul at $38 billion, and the agreement between the companies says that the upstart will continue to operate independently.