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Altria.
Shares of Philip Morris' holding company jumped $4.43 to $77.76, accounting for nearly half of the Dow Jones industrials' gain for the day. Investors hope the verdict clears the way for the company to break its food and cigarette business apart as planned, says Timothy Ramey, analyst at D.A. Davidson.
Altria began the break in 2001, when it sold 14.9% of its foods division as an initial public offering of Kraft. It further prepared last month for a clean break when a new CEO was named.
The break won't happen immediately, since there's still pending tobacco litigation, including a $13 billion claim from the Department of Justice, Ramey says. The path is cleared somewhat, though.
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