Altria Group (MO) Juul Case

Altria Group (MO) agreed to pay up to $117 million to settle a securities class action lawsuit to avoid further litigation.

The Complaint alleged that the Company and its Leaders made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that:

• Altria had conducted insufficient due diligence into JUUL prior to the Company’s $12.8 billion investment, or 35% stake, in JUUL;

• Altria consequently failed to inform investors or account for material risks associated with JUUL’s products and marketing practices, and the true value of JUUL and its products;

• all of the foregoing, as well as mounting public scrutiny, negative publicity, and governmental pressure on e-vapor products and JUUL made it reasonably likely that Altria’s investment in JUUL would have a material negative impact on the Company’s reputation and operations;