Lorillard’s 1Q profit up 47 pct on higher pricing, e-cig sales, lower costs

Lorillard’s first-quarter profit jumped 47 percent as higher prices, e-cigarette sales and lower legal expenses from a longstanding legal settlement offset a decline in traditional cigarette sales.

The nation’s third-biggest tobacco company on Wednesday reported earnings of $328 million, or 86 cents per share, for the period ended March 31, up from $223 million, or 57 cents per share, a year ago, according to the Associated Press.

Excluding one-time items, earnings were 66 cents per share, beating Wall Street expectations by 2 cents. That excludes a benefit of 23 cents per share in credits for disputed payments under the 1998 Master Settlement Agreement, in which some cigarette makers are paying states for smoking-related health care costs.

Revenue excluding excises taxes rose 6 percent to $1.12 billion, matching analyst expectations, according to FactSet.

Its shares rose $1.29, or about 3 percent, to $43.07 in morning trading.