Do we like them?

Do we like Philip Morris International?

Tobacco and nicotine maker (Marlboro outside the US, IQOS, ZYN), run from Lausanne, Switzerland, with a US listing

Our score: 3 out of 10. We wouldn't back them. Cigarettes are still a big part of the business, and regulators and health groups keep accusing them of misleading claims and lobbying, even as they move to smoke-free products.

PMI is the Marlboro maker outside the US. It split from Philip Morris USA, now part of Altria, in 2008. It is run from Lausanne. Jacek Olczak joined in 1993 and became CEO in May 2021, taking over from André Calantzopoulos.

The pitch is that cigarettes should be replaced by better alternatives. Olczak told the Mail on Sunday that cigarettes should be banned in the UK within a decade. PMI says smoke-free products were 43% of first-quarter 2026 net revenue and sell in over 105 markets.

In June 2026 the FDA let 20 ZYN pouches carry a claim that switching from cigarettes lowers the risk of diseases like lung cancer and heart disease. CNBC noted the decision does not mean ZYN is safe. The FDA also authorised 11 ZYN ULTRA products in August 2026.

The dramas keep coming. Italy's competition watchdog opened a probe into whether 'smoke-free' wording misled customers. In the Netherlands, an advertising body ruled that a PMI campaign using an AI tool against tougher EU rules breached the ad ban. A Dutch foundation plans a criminal complaint over heated tobacco claims.

Our score is 3. Moving away from cigarettes is welcome, but most of the money still comes from products that harm people. The company also keeps drawing accusations over how it markets and lobbies for its newer products. We'd keep our money elsewhere.