Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

(Continued)

Discussion and Analysis > Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates

Note 2 to the consolidated financial statements includes a summary of the significant accounting policies and methods used in the preparation of Altria Group, Inc.’s consolidated financial statements. In most instances, Altria Group, Inc. must use an accounting policy or method because it is the only policy or method permitted under accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“U.S. GAAP”).

The preparation of financial statements includes the use of estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities, the disclosure of contingent liabilities at the dates of the financial statements and the reported amounts of net revenues and expenses during the reporting periods. If actual amounts are ultimately different from previous estimates, the revisions are included in Altria Group, Inc.’s consolidated results of operations for the period in which the actual amounts become known. Historically, the aggregate differences, if any, between Altria Group, Inc.’s estimates and actual amounts in any year, have not had a significant impact on its consolidated financial statements.

The selection and disclosure of Altria Group, Inc.’s critical accounting policies and estimates have been discussed with Altria Group, Inc.’s Audit Committee. The following is a review of the more significant assumptions and estimates, as well as the accounting policies and methods used in the preparation of Altria Group, Inc.’s consolidated financial statements:

Consolidation—The consolidated financial statements include ALG, as well as its wholly-owned and majority-owned subsidiaries. Investments in which ALG exercises significant influence (20%—50% ownership interest), are accounted for under the equity method of accounting. Investments in which ALG has an ownership interest of less than 20%, or does not exercise significant influence, are accounted for with the cost method of accounting. All intercompany transactions and balances have been eliminated.

Revenue Recognition—As required by U.S. GAAP, Altria Group, Inc.’s consumer products businesses recognize revenues, net of sales incentives and including shipping and handling charges billed to customers, upon shipment of goods when title and risk of loss pass to customers. ALG’s tobacco subsidiaries also include excise taxes billed to customers in revenues. Shipping and handling costs are classified as part of cost of sales.

Depreciation, Amortization and Goodwill Valuation—Altria Group, Inc. depreciates property, plant and equipment and amortizes its definite life intangible assets using straight-line methods over the estimated useful lives of the assets.

Altria Group, Inc. is required to conduct an annual review of goodwill and intangible assets for potential impairment. Goodwill impairment testing requires a comparison between the carrying value and fair value of each reporting unit. If the carrying value exceeds the fair value, goodwill is considered impaired. The amount of impairment loss is measured as the difference between the carrying value and implied fair value of goodwill, which is determined using discounted cash flows. Impairment testing for non-amortizable intangible assets requires a comparison between fair value and carrying value of the intangible asset. If the carrying value exceeds fair value, the intangible asset is considered impaired and is reduced to fair value. These calculations may be affected by interest rates and general economic conditions. During 2004, Altria Group, Inc. completed its annual review of goodwill and intangible assets. This review resulted in a $29 million non-cash pre-tax charge at Kraft related to intangible asset impairments for a small confectionery business in the United States and certain brands in Mexico. A portion of this charge, $12 million, was recorded as asset impairment and exit costs on the consolidated statement of earnings. The remainder of the charge, $17 million, is included in discontinued operations.

Marketing and Advertising Costs—As required by U.S. GAAP, Altria Group, Inc. records marketing costs as an expense in the year to which such costs relate. Altria Group, Inc. does not defer amounts on its year-end consolidated balance sheets with respect to marketing costs. Altria Group, Inc. expenses advertising costs in the year incurred. Consumer incentive and trade promotion activities are recorded as a reduction of revenues based on amounts estimated as being due to customers and consumers at the end of a period, based principally on historical utilization and redemption rates. Such programs include, but are not limited to, discounts, coupons, rebates, in-store display incentives and volume-based incentives. For interim reporting purposes, advertising and certain consumer incentive expenses are charged to operations as a percentage of sales, based on estimated sales and related expenses for the full year.



Contingencies—As discussed in Note 19 to the consolidated financial statements (“Note 19”), legal proceedings covering a wide range of matters are pending or threatened in various jurisdictions against ALG, its subsidiaries and affiliates, including PM USA and PMI, as well as their respective indemnitees. In 1998, PM USA and certain other United States tobacco product manufacturers entered into the Master Settlement Agreement (the “MSA”) with 46 states and various other governments and jurisdictions to settle asserted and unasserted health care cost recovery and other claims. PM USA and certain other United States tobacco product manufacturers had previously settled similar claims brought by Mississippi, Florida, Texas and Minnesota (together with the MSA, the “State Settlement Agreements”). PM USA’s portion of ongoing adjusted payments and legal fees is based on its relative share of the settling manufacturers’ domestic cigarette shipments, including roll-your-own cigarettes, in the year preceding that in which the payment is due. PM USA records its portion of ongoing settlement payments as part of cost of sales as product is shipped. During the years ended December 31, 2004, 2003 and 2002, PM USA recorded expenses of $4.6 billion, $4.4 billion and $5.3 billion, respectively, as part of cost of sales for the payments under the State Settlement Agreements and payments for tobacco growers and quota-holders.

ALG and its subsidiaries record provisions in the consolidated financial statements for pending litigation when they determine that an unfavorable outcome is probable and the amount of the loss can be reasonably estimated. Except as discussed in Note 19: (i) management has not concluded that it is probable that a loss has been incurred in any of the pending tobacco-related litigation; (ii) management is unable to make a meaningful estimate of the amount or range of loss that could result from an unfavorable outcome of pending tobacco-related litigation; and (iii) accordingly, management has not provided any amounts in the consolidated financial statements for unfavorable outcomes, if any.

Employee Benefit Plans—As discussed in Note 16. Benefit Plans (“Note 16”) of the notes to the consolidated financial statements, Altria Group, Inc. provides a range of benefits to its employees and retired employees, including pensions, postretirement health care and postemployment benefits (primarily severance). Altria Group, Inc. records annual amounts relating to these plans based on calculations specified by U.S. GAAP, which include various actuarial assumptions, such as discount rates, assumed rates of return on plan assets, compensation increases, turnover rates and health care cost trend rates. Altria Group, Inc. reviews its actuarial assumptions on an annual basis and makes modifications to the assumptions based on current rates and trends when it is deemed appropriate to do so. As permitted by U.S. GAAP, the effect of the modifications is generally amortized over future periods. Altria Group, Inc. believes that the assumptions utilized in recording its obligations under its plans, which are presented in Note 16, are reasonable based on advice from its actuaries.

In December 2003, the United States enacted into law the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement and Modernization Act of 2003, establishing a prescription drug benefit known as “Medicare Part D,” and a federal subsidy to sponsors of retiree health care benefit plans that provide a benefit that is at least actuarially equivalent to Medicare Part D.

In May 2004, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued FASB Staff Position No. 106-2, “Accounting and Disclosure Requirements Related to the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement and Modernization Act of 2003” (“FSP 106-2”). FSP 106-2 requires companies to account for the effect of the subsidy on benefits attributable to past service as an actuarial experience gain and as a reduction of the service cost component of net postretirement health care costs for amounts attributable to current service, if the benefit provided is at least actuarially equivalent to Medicare Part D.

Altria Group, Inc. adopted FSP 106-2 in the third quarter of 2004. The impact of adoption for 2004 was a reduction of pre-tax net postretirement health care costs and an increase in net earnings of $28 million (including $24 million related to Kraft). In addition, as of July 1, 2004, Altria Group, Inc. reduced its accumulated postretirement benefit obligation for the subsidy related to benefits attributed to past service by $375 million and decreased its unrecognized actuarial losses by the same amount.

At December 31, 2004, for its U.S. pension and postretirement plans, Altria Group, Inc. reduced its discount rate assumption to 5.75% and modified its health care cost trend rate assumption. At December 31, 2004, Altria Group, Inc. reduced its long-term rate of return assumption from 9.0% to 8.0% based on the investment return of its pension assets, which are primarily in U.S. equity securities. Altria Group, Inc. presently anticipates that these assumption changes, coupled with the amortization of lower returns on pension fund assets in prior years and the full effect of adopting Medicare Part D, will result in an increase in 2005 pre-tax benefit expense of approximately $300 million. A fifty basis point decline (increase) in Altria Group, Inc.’s discount rate would increase (decrease) Altria Group, Inc.’s pension and postretirement expense by approximately $120 million. Similarly, a fifty basis point decrease (increase) in the expected return on plan assets would increase (decrease) Altria Group, Inc.’s pension expense by approximately $52 million. See Note 16 for a sensitivity discussion of the assumed health care cost trend rates.