. >> i think philip morris international makes sense.f you're going to get defensive, worried about global growth and want to bury money in a place that's safe, this has been delivering. it's the type of stock that it lets slowing more than suggesting. it's the type of stock that is not recession proof but recession resistant. and it's the typical play you would make if you have the types of concerns that were circulating today. >> i love smoking as an investment, obviously. kids at home, of course it's not going on at my home. the chinese government doesn't seem to care. $95 billion are taxing tobacco products. they love this. philip morris, it's also just about execution. this is a cash flow machine. 10%, 12% a year. this is the 15th, 16th most profitable company in the world. >> and in smoking countries, when people get nervous about the economy, what do people do? >> chain smoke. kicking it on the smoking front in addition to the economic front. and philip morris with a 4% div yield, these are good names. >> we have a lot of low beta

his clients range from former vice president al gore to philip morris, to the national geographic society, and he is listed in the 2011 edition of the best lawyers in america. his cross-examination of an expert witness in bush vs. gore made the front page of "the new york times." he has a framed in his office. he was the youngest attorney and first hispanic to serve as president of the florida bar. he was chair of the ethics commission and served on the orange board committee. in the aba, he has been a florida state delegate, chair of the house of delegates, our policy-making body, served on the board of governors, and is a fellow of the american bar foundation. as the aba president, he has led national effort to protect state courts, improve civics education, and fight cuts to legal aid funding. it is his mission to make equal justice under law a vibrant living reality for everyone, not just four words carved on the facade of the supreme court building in washington. mr. zack is a passionate and tireless advocate for liberty and justice for all. as he wrote in a letter in today's "daily

within consumer staples: philip morris, coca cola enterprises and campbell soup were tasty for shareholders. shares of liz claiborne also moved higher today, but on takeover buzz, not consumer spending. the apparel maker and retailer reportedly held talks with private equity firms and are looking for $20 a share. the stock rose 13% to close at $13.36. a $20 price tag would value liz at $2 billion. also in the spotlight in the apparel sector: the athletic outfitter finish line. but, it's stock tripped badly, after the company's year ahead forecast fell short of expectations. analysts had been bullish about finish line's future with licensed apparel and product launches tied to the summer olympics shares of finish line dropped 16% to close at $21.22. and, there are accounting troubles for groupon. after the closing bell, the daily-deals company revised financial results for q4 and fiscal 2011. the new numbers show a bigger loss in q4 revenue than previously reported. the company said there's a, quote, "material weakness in its internal control." in regular trading, groupon shares gained nearl

the parent company of philip morris says its markets to adults only. >> some rain on the way just to the rest -- just to the west of us. on the warm side for now. temperatures will start to drop significantly. right now from baltimore south and east, temperatures are quite warm even along the coastal sections. as you work your way back into the western maryland, by the time you get to columbus, ohio, 40's and '50's are the more dominant temperatures out there. a closer look at the range shows it is right at the doorstep. late this evening, it will start to get wet and this time tomorrow, it will be a lot chillier. unseasonably mild. the last time we hit 74 was november 14. we also had 74 in mid october. last time it was warmer than this was the 10th of october. it has been a while since we have had temperatures this form. their record high is out of reach. nothing in the rain gauge yet. 68 over chester town on the eastern shore. you see the first signs of a fairly significant cold front there. a few light showers and sprinkles are possible around baltimore. rain chances increase with

. >> so there is lance armstrong foundation and stop on the no side is philip morris. >> the other measureximum number of years lawmakers can spent from 14 years down to 12 but it's more complicated. >> there is unlike the current pro vigs won't have to lead afterç 6:00 years or senate after 8:00 and could spend all three in either house if they chose to. >> thisç allows people to spend time in office so they can learn their positions and study details of the budget. >> and bruce cane says it arou lous lawmaker stoz stay put and learn the ropes. and shows there is no financial opposition to prop 28 but that could change. to find a voter guide go to abc 7 news.com. >> that is a great resource to have. >> republican president yil hopefuls are gearing up, both crisscrossing ahead of the vote. early results show romney ahead with 55%. and there is a strong win yesterday but santorum vowing not to give up. rhetoric is becoming increasingly personal. >> i don't think you're going to replace an economic light weight with another economic light weight. >> i heard governor romney call me an econo

philip morris, the nation's largest tobacco company released a statement saying we agree smoking is addictives serious disease. for those who want to avoid the health effects of smoking, the best thing to do is to quit. however, according to the centers for disease control, 20% of american adults do smoke and that hasn't changed since 2003. that's why they're pushing for these graphic alds for the next three months. back to -- ads for the next three months. back to you. >> all right, delia. >>> 6:35. jessica doyle is here with another your money report. >> investors are making more money for you to watch. >> we've been talking the last few days about multiyear highs for the dow, nasdaq and s&p 500. last week they all hit those highs but that's not the full story here. there's more good news. if you're an investor who likes stocks that pay dividends, you are cashing in, too. our partners at "u.s.a. today" report the companies are on pace to pay a record $263 billion in dividends to shareholders over the next year. and those record dividend payments are coming, even though stock prices are stil

if you want a good yield, i am going to send you to pm, which is the spinoff, philip morris, if you want growth. and let's go to maureen in illinois. maureen? >> caller: boo-yah, jim cramer. >> boo-yah. >> caller: from chicago. thanks for not calling us muppets. >> no, you are not muppets. that's someone else did that. thank you. what's up? >> caller: thank you. what is your take on ew edwards life science? >> i like it. a lot of people think this is a very controversial stock. when you speak to thoracic surgeons, they don't think so. it wouldn't surprise me if the stock stays here. let's go to ed in new jersey. ed. >> caller: leprechaun boo-yah, jim. >> erin go bragh boo-yah to you. what's going on? >> caller: ipo, is it a fast stock and stocks should hit 45 this year or the company should be bought out because of its good earnings. >> it just came public. they did have a change of management that worried me. i should have gotten bullish, i didn't. and my conclusion is maybe this story is better than i think. that's how i have to look at it. dennis in illinois. dennis. >> caller: yes, l

. >> we also saw philip morris. >> yes. >> and those are the leading sectors.t are the risks, from your standpoint, for the market? >> you have the tax policy issues that you brought up earlier. >> right. >> you have the number issues in terms of maybe sell and may. we have earnings reports coming out in april. we expect them to be reasonable. historically speaking, earnings reports as well as profit margins are still above average. they are expected to slow down a little bit. >> what would you buy here then? >> i think high-quality big cap names. i like the technology sector, consumers, health care. all of those are dividend plays. i want somebody that can raise their dividend with a strong cash flow. there's not going to be that much growth. people need money and they need -- institutions need money. a lot of these endowments are tied up in long-term investments. they need regular income. i think there's a really good story that tommy had to say. >> in terms of the fundamentals supporting this market, are you expecting earnings estimates to come down? what ar

both rj reynolds and altria a parent company of philip morris reminded smokers of the dangers of tobacco and supported quitting. >> enjoy your independence now. >> reporter: the cdc's campaign comes just two weeks after a federal judge said the government's plan to include graphic warning labels on packs of cigarettes is unconstitutional. the new media campaign has been described as those images come to life. >> don't you have something better to do? you know, do you -- are you prepared for the actions you're doing today to affect the rest of your life? >> reporter: erica edwards, nbc news. >> powerful stuff. >> really powerful. i know we're familiar with lung cancer, which is bad enough. some of the graphic things they're showing there really remind us of how serious smoking can be. >>> coming up next on news 4 at 4:00 if you saw pink slime on the menu would you order it? >> that's the nickname for something now served up in school cafeterias but that could soon change. >>> i'm wendy rieger. coming up a dentist arrested accused of illegally prescribing pills and also facing disturbing a

altria, parent company of philip morris usa says it markets to adults only. erica edwards, nbc news. >>> the metro apparently knew for six years that some of its railcars had brake problems. that revelation surfaced today at a board meeting about metro safety. according to the "washington post," the transit agency knew that brake parts designed to last 35 years were failing after 10 or 15 years. but the agency didn't have money to fix the problem. in two recent cases, brake parts fell off of trains. there were no injuries, luckily. all of the parts in question have been replaced. tom sherwood will have more on this story coming up on "news4 at 5." >>> and the republican race for the white house, they're off to the south now. there are primaries on tuesday in alabama and mississippi. for mitt romney, there could be a rough road ahead. steve handelsman reports. >> reporter: he is from pennsylvania, but rick santorum is counting now on the deep south, religious and conservative like him. he went to huntsville today. >> are we going win on tuesday here in alabama

cigarette companies such as altria, the parent company of philip morris and r.j.eynolds claim they don't target youth smokers. >>> well, we're in the midst of a solar storm, one of the strongest in five years is hitting the earth right now and creating an incredible view if you're in range of the aurora borealis. as it continues, there is a chance it could disrupt communication systems, the gps, our power grids. joining us with some insight on all this, we're in the midst of it, but we look like everything is still up and running. is the worst over? is the worst still to come? >> i'm sorry, wendy, what did you say? i got some interference here. no. [ laughter ] >> i got to tell you, it's been a big yawner, to be honest. it looks like this thing has passed without any problems whatsoever. we've been speaking all day with the telecom experts, the power grid as well as the folks with noaa in boulder, colorado. they all say the earth dodged if not a bullet, then a plasma wave. they were expecting a g-3 scale. on a scale of 1 to 5, this would be a 5. they got a g-1 min

. >> first stop, pm, philip morris. >> smoke show. >> caller: duk, duke; sbux, starbucks; intc, intel eli lilly. jim, am i diversified? >> man, 23-year-old's got game. howard schultz, what a great growth stock. duke energy, nice yield. and eli lilly superb yield. we've got tobacco, utility, we've got restaurant, we've got tech, and we have drug. i say that man from northwest arkansas knows how to play the game. >> hallelujah! >> now linda in south carolina. linda? >> caller: yes, jim, hi. boo-yah to you. i've been watching you for years. >> thank you. >> caller: the stocks i have, at&t, verizon, ibm, pfizer and xerox. i want to know if we're diversified, and i want to know if you would recommend that we purchase aa, alcoa, duk, duke, or glw, corning. >> wow, got a lot on my plate here. that's okay. my plate has runneth over from lunch. ibm, great technologies. pfizer, terrific yield there. xerox, not that crazy about it. but we have information technology, information technology. we have to make a change there. take out xerox, get rid of, that and we're going to insert, let's see, how

spokesman for the parent company tobacco giant philip morris says it markets to adults and not to childrenar quite a tax burden. farm ares toss rotten eggs at a government building to protest a plan to import american beef. that tops our news around the world in 80 seconds. thousands of hog farmers showed up. the cabinet announced it plans to lift a ban on u.s. beef that manipulate mall food additive. health concerns might effect consumption of other meat products. ledge later there have yet to sign off on the plan. romania. ' thousand coal miners are failing to go to work. they want better pay. walk to the capital more than 200 miles away. cops blocked that move today by taking over a bridge. india. hundreds of families who live in slums in a northern state now have nowhere to go after a night fire ripped through their shanty village. we are told most of them were asleep at the time. no word of anybody killed. police official says the cause of the fire is unknown. mexico. the president felipe calderon has inaugurated what is said to be one of the largest wind farm projects. more than 200

philip morris is a stock i love. i know i'm in -- i think u.s. tobacco is doing just fine, too. that's also at an all-time high. the dividend yield makes a lot of stocks. deajio hit an all-time high yesterday. another name i own. >> i have names like nike, yumm brands, el paso, starbucks, coach, home depot and mattel are also there. which ones do you like there? >> every single stock on the list with the exception of el paso which is part of an acquisition is a consumer stock. different businesses, restaurants, it's retail, they have retail operations. you have to believe in the strength of the consumer. i see no basis for shorting apple other than where it's moved. you don't short stocks where they've come from. you short them because where they're going to and you don't believe the fundamentals will get you there. apple to me is the most attractive stock. i disagree with cortes. i think apple can be the death of google. when you use suri voice, you don't look at the ads. it goes straight to the search and the search comes up. so i'm not really worried about it now. i'd much pr

brands, look at philip morris. people are going to be getting increases in their salaries, they are going to be able to spend more. not everyone's got a car, so the gas prices going up, yeah, it hurts a little bit on the margins, but it's not going to be that pervasive. look at the consumer. the consumer not necessarily on the high end in china, but just the everyday stuff. you'll see the continued growth in those other names. >> emerging middle class we hear so much about. we should know that bhp responding today, that they're not saying anything new and the base case steel forecast for china remains unchanged. >> there is new news on china, and that is the fact that the data has deteriorated so significantly lately. for instance, we got out this week property numbers out of china. we see the fifth month in a row of housing numbers going down in china. we've seen terrible export numbers, particularly in regards to europe. we see foreign direct investment fall for the first time in years. so, the data is deteriorat

this is from philip morris spokesman. that would be their position. menthol. it is an anesthetic. it dulls the feeling of the throat and makes it easier for a new smoker to get the harsh smoke down. they say it's no coincidence that half of middle schoolers who smoke smoke menthol. these advocates say, look, they're doing this on purpose and they would like to see menthol cigarettes off the market entirely. >> they had flavored tobacco a while back and the cherry and all the rest and menthol may be next on the chopping block. >> right, there are flavored tobacco products, not necessarily cigarettes but smokeless tobacco that have these cool names and flavors. >> of course, that pipe tobacco out there, too. all kind of gross to me, but not to others. we'll watch and see what happens. thanks, elizabeth. wish you were bringing better news. >>> also want to mention on "starting point" with soledad o'brien in about 7:50 a.m. on the east coast. she'll talk to matthew myers who is the president and campaign of tobacco-free kids. >> i can't believe she said m

philip morris says it markets to adults only through age-verified web sites and direct mailing. erika edwards, wbal-tv 11 news. >> don't go away. we have much more news coming up. first here is a look at events coming on around town today. >> a local acrobatics team is hoping to represent -- to score big in april when they represent team u.s.a. 18-year-old emily is the base. 15-year-old krissy is the middle. 12-year-old hannah on top. >> we are so close. we are happy together. we fight like sisters. we hang out all the time. >> the girls train at amelia's and they will commeeth compete on team u.s.a. in the championships. >> this group is essential to make it to the medal. >> i am ecstatic. >> i am excited. it has been our tream to go to wompled we have been working hard for it. >> the girls will be compete -- competing against trios from other countries and another team who happens to be from silver spring. >> we have balance and tempo. balance is holding it, and tempo is when they throw me up and i do flips and a double. >> i am proud of this group. they are working very hard.

over the past -- philip morris hit a new all-time high today. we conducted a survey called tobacco talk. the company has been able to stabilize growing marlboro profitably. so that's what we're looking for, we're there, we're more comfortable. so we decided to take it up to our top u.s. stop pick. >> the fresh record high set in today's session, on a surge of 1.7%. when you compare the two, one is u.s. operations versus international operations because it is seen as the regulatory environment is not as stringent. if you were to compare the two which would you favor? or are they open at this point. >> i would -- e. >> it's really because of the momentum and the growth, and a lot of that is what we're seeing in asia. we did a deep dive analysis in asia. we see profits in indonesia can quadruple by the year 2020. this stock has a lot more on the upside. >> in terms of the smoking prevalence, they've got a lot of opportunity. >> 6 million is just a drop in the ocean, it won't make any difference between the demographics you're talking about. >> it's

philip morris, cigarettes, they only paid 27%. pepsico, very good company, only paid 24%.these are effective tax rates and my favorite, although i like them very much, but g.e. only paid 9% effective tax rate. when the senator says we need tax reform, we most certainly need tax reform and if you came to me and said in a major bill we're going to have an energy bill and we're going to have some tax reform to balance this out, i would be for that. but in good conscience i can't take away the subsidies from oil and gas only when they only represent 13% of the overall subsidies but produce 60% of the energy, and i most certainly don't want to raise taxes on an industry right now with prices at the pump being high, all you're going to do is drive them up which is the last thing we want to do particularly when this is the truth about the tax rates. so, again, the senator from alaska is absolutely correct. this debate that we are not having but everyone else is having is not getting us very far. mr. begich: if i could add one more bit here before maybe we get to our final here, b