Altria’s decision to proactively respond to a regulatory crackdown on tobacco products that appeal to teenagers is a positive that positions the company well in appeasing antismoking advocates and addressing the competitive pressure from rival Juul, one analyst said Thursday. 
 
 Altria Inc. MO, +2.10% said that it is pulling its MarkTen Elite and Apex by MarkTen e-cigarette pods from off store shelves until it either gets the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s blessing to sell them, or the issue of teens becoming addicted to nicotine is otherwise resolved, the company said in its third-quarter earnings release. 
 
 The company will also stop selling products with any flavors other than regular tobacco, mint or menthol. The FDA recently announced a review of teens and e-cigarette smoking, with top official Commissioner Scott Gottlieb decrying an epidemic, driven by the availability of smokeless products. Much of his ire was directed at Juul Labs, which has been marketing a line of online products with flavors including “crème brûlée” and “cool cucumber,” that contain high levels of nicotine and resonate strongly with young people. 
 
 See now: Young people apparently don’t realize these popular ‘crème brûlée’ e-cigarettes contain nicotine 
 
 Related: Why smoking among teens has reached historic lows 
 
 Gottlieb said efforts to convert adult smokers to less harmful e-cigarettes shouldn’t come at the expense of younger people’s health. The FDA is planning to release evidence of its findings next month and is considering a ban on flavored e-cigarettes and further restrictions on online sales. 
 
 “Although we don’t believe we have a current issue with youth access or use of our E-vapor products, we are taking this action because we don’t want to risk contributing to the issue,” Altria Chief Executive Howard Willard told analysts on a call to discuss quarterly results, according to a FactSet transcript. “Additionally, we will support federal legislation to establish anyone as the minimum age to purchase any tobacco product.” 
 
 Read now: Juul’s headquarters get surprise inspection by FDA 
 
 The company estimates that about 5% of adult tobacco users are legal age through 20 and that they account for about 2% of cigarette industry volumes, 4% of smokeless industry volumes and 15% of E-Vapor industry volumes, he said. 
 
 “We view Altria’s proactive decision to remove MarkTen Elite & Apex pod products and to restrict its cig-a-like product flavors pending a market order from the FDA or clarity on youth access as positive,” said Wells Fargo analyst Bonnie Herzog. She reiterated her outperform rating on the stock. 
 
 Willard disappointed those investors who were hoping today’s release would be accompanied by some kind of news about a move into the cannabis sector. Asked on the call to elaborate on plans, the CEO reiterated that the company is exploring opportunities in the space, on the grounds that cannabis may not always be federally banned. 
 
 ‘I’ll hold back on explaining in more detail kind of how we view the category because we are relatively early in our exploration,” he said. 
 
 Canada’s move to fully legalize cannabis for adult recreational use and the growing number of U.S. states that allow it for either medical or recreational use have fueled excitement that a legal sector is emerging that may be worth billions of dollars. Drinks companies, notably Constellation Brands Inc. STZ, +1.22% have made moves in the sector; Constellation has invested $4 billion in Canada’s Canopy Growth Corp. and others are said to be eyeing the sector. 
 
 For all of MarketWatch’s coverage of Canadian legalization, click here. 
 
 Tobacco companies are widely viewed as a natural fit for the sector, but big players are wary of the federal law, which continues to classify weed as a Schedule I drug, placing it in the same category as heroin and cocaine. That ban has made it impossible for companies to have bank accounts with institutions that are federally backed and blocked them from capital markets. 
 
 Altria posted net income of $1.94 billion, or $1.03 per share, for the third quarter, up from $1.87 billion, or 97 cents per share, for the same period last year. Adjusted per-share earnings came to $1.08., ahead of the FactSet consensus of $1.06. 
 
 Revenue climbed to $6.84 billion from $6.73 billion, while revenue net of excise taxes was $5.29 billion. The FactSet consensus was for revenue of $5.21 billion. 
 
 The company narrowed its full-year adjusted EPS guidance to a range of $3.95 to $4.03, which compares with a consensus of $4.00. 
 
 Shares were flat in early afternoon trade, but are down about 13% in 2018, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, +0.75% is up 0.6% and the S&P 500 SPX, +0.85% has gained 0.7%. 
 
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 Tobacco giant Altria MO 0.37% Group Inc. is pulling its pod-style e-cigarette devices from the market and discontinuing the sale of many e-cigarette flavors to combat underage use—a move that puts pressure on upstart Juul Labs Inc., which has grown rapidly by selling such products. 
 
 The Food and Drug Administration has warned of a public-health crisis from widespread use of e-cigarettes by children, and threatened to ban a broad swath of flavored products. 
 
 Altria’s “cigalike” device is designed to look and feel like a traditional cigarette. Most of its cartridge refills come in tobacco or menthol flavors. Photo: Altria 
 
 Altria’s e-cigarettes, sold under the MarkTen and Green Smoke brands, are just a small slice of the U.S. market. Juul is the dominant player, with devices resembling USB sticks and pods in mango, cucumber and other flavors. 
 
 In a letter to the FDA, Altria Chief Executive Howard Willard said underage use of e-cigarettes is “compounded by flavors that go beyond” traditional tobacco and menthol flavors. 
 
 Altria, whose traditional cigarette brands include Marlboro, said it would continue to sell most of its e-cigarettes and that the drop in sales would be immaterial to its overall business. In contrast, most of Juul’s growth has come from flavored pods, and its expansion has threatened Altria’s lucrative, but shrinking, cigarette franchise. 
 
 Juul declined to comment on Altria’s move. 
 
 Altria represented 5.6% of the U.S. e-cigarette market for the four weeks ended Oct. 6, according to a Wells Fargo analysis of Nielsen data. That doesn’t include online sales. Juul, whose products are sold online and in convenience stores, gas stations and vape shops, accounted for 74.5%. 
 
 As sales soared this year for Juul’s vaporizers, Altria expanded distribution of a similar product called MarkTen Elite with flavors such as Strawberry Brulee, Apple Cider and Hazelnut Cream. Former Altria chief Marty Barrington touted the product at an analyst conference in February, saying Elite’s pods held more than twice as much liquid as Juul’s. 
 
 Juul’s vaporizer resembles a USB stick. It uses pod refills containing nicotine-laced liquid in flavors such as mango and cucumber. One refill pod contains as much nicotine as of a pack of cigarettes. Photo: Juul/Associated Press 
 
 Altria this year also expanded online sales for a device called Apex, with prefilled tanks in Spiced Fruit and Piña Colada flavors. Elite was in 25,000 stores and Apex was available online in 10 states. Sales of both will be discontinued until the FDA authorizes them, the company said. 
 
 Altria said it would continue to sell e-cigarette products that resemble traditional cigarettes but limit them to tobacco, menthol and mint flavors for now. These so-called cigalike devices have been less popular among children than USB-shaped vaporizers with flavored pods, such as Juul’s. 
 
 Altria said about 80% of its e-cigarette volume from the third quarter will remain on the market after it pulls the Elite and Apex devices and the flavored cartridges for its other e-cigarettes. 
 
 Given Altria’s small share of the vaping business, some analysts have worried that rising sales of Juul devices could steal market share from Altria and also cannibalize the traditional cigarette business, where Marlboro still dominates the market. 
 
 On Thursday, Altria reported that its third-quarter revenue rose 1.6% from a year earlier, but that sales for the first nine months of the year fell 1.2% to $19.3 billion. Shipments of Marlboro cigarettes were down 5.8% in the nine months, though Altria offset those declines with higher prices. 
 
 Altria said Thursday it would support federal legislation requiring a minimum age of 21 to purchase all tobacco products, including e-cigarettes. Federal law currently sets the minimum age at 18, though six states have raised their minimum age to 21. 
 
 “We believe e-vapor products present an important opportunity for adult smokers to switch from combustible cigarettes,” Mr. Willard wrote in his letter to the FDA. “Yet, the current situation with youth use of e-vapor products, left unchecked, has the potential to undermine that opportunity for adult smokers.” 
 
 Shares of Altria rose 1.4% on Thursday. 
 
 Altria’s move comes after the FDA warned in September that it could impose new restrictions on e-cigarette sales, including potentially banning flavors other than tobacco and menthol. The agency had asked Juul, Altria, British American Tobacco PLC and other major e-cigarette manufacturers to present convincing plans for reducing teen use, or risk having their products yanked from the market. 
 
 Juul, which was valued at $16 billion in a funding round this summer, has said its products are intended to help adult smokers quit and that it has taken several steps to combat underage use, including raising the minimum purchase age on its website to 21, adding age-verification tools to its website, and limiting how many pods a single customer can buy each month. 
 
 Mr. Willard said Altria supports raising the minimum age to 21 because federal data show that young people gain access to tobacco through their friends. He said 5% of tobacco consumers are between 18 and 20 years old, representing 2% of cigarette smokers and 15% of e-cigarette users. 
 
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 The FDA “appreciates any voluntary steps companies can take to address the youth access and appeal of e-cigarettes,” a spokesman said. “All policy options are on the table, including taking additional steps to address flavors that appeal to kids and combat illegal sales to minors.” 
 
 After years of declining U.S. smoking rates, sales of e-cigarettes have jumped in the past year, fueled in part by online startups selling vaporizers and nicotine-laced liquids. Each $4 Juul pod contains as much nicotine as a pack of cigarettes. 
 
 The number of high-school students who used e-cigarettes in the past 30 days has risen roughly 75% since last year, according to preliminary federal data. 
 
 That would equate to about three million, or about 20% of high-school students. Meanwhile, use among middle-schoolers has increased nearly 50%. 
 
 Nearly a third of 13-to-18-year-olds who responded to a survey conducted in May by The Wall Street Journal with research firm Mercury Analytics said they currently vape. Most of the teens who vape said they are doing it for reasons other than to quit smoking, according to the Journal’s survey conducted in 49 states. More than half said they do it because they like the flavors that e-cigarette liquids come in and they think vaping is fun. 
 
 More than two-thirds said they believe vaping can be part of a “healthy life.” 
 
 Write to Jennifer Maloney at jennifer.maloney@wsj.com 

 CLOSE Teen vaping is reaching epidemic levels and FDA is considering regulation to curb it. One proposal would be banning flavoring of e-cigarette liquids. USA TODAY 
 
 Brandon Nguyen, co-founder of Vapor Solutions DMV, is seen vaping at the store in Falls Church, VA. (Photo: Jack Gruber, USA TODAY) 
 
 Tobacco maker Altria Group pledged Thursday to stop selling certain vaping products until federal regulators sign off on those items or "the youth issue is otherwise addressed." 
 
 The move came after the Food and Drug Administration said recently that it was weighing a ban on certain flavored e-cigarette liquids amid mounting concerns about teenagers vaping. 
 
 Altria, the parent company of Philip Morris USA and maker of Marlboro cigarettes, is halting sales of multiple items: 
 
 MarkTen Elite pod-based products. 
 
 Apex by MarkTen pod-based products. 
 
 All favored variants of MarkTen and Green Smoke "cig-a-like products" except tobacco, menthol and mint varieties. 
 
 FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb recently met with Altria "to discuss actions that could be taken," Altria said in a statement. 
 
 More: Teens hooked by vaping: FDA weighing a ban on flavored e-cigarette liquids 
 
 More: Feds' new campaign against youth vaping 'epidemic' targets middle and high schoolers 
 
 More: 'Dripping' may be a new, dangerous trend for teens who vape 
 
 The agency has pressed vaping companies to roll out measures to prevent teenagers from vaping and to stop marketing the products to young people. 
 
 The FDA has also been under pressure from health groups that sued the agency for allowing products vaping to hit the market without approval. 
 
 More than 2 million middle school, high school and college teens use battery-powered devices to heat liquid-based nicotine into an inhalable vapor. Nearly 12 percent of high school students vaped in the past 30 days, according to the 2017 National Youth Tobacco Survey released in June 2018. 
 
 Medical professionals say vaping can lead to nicotine addiction and tobacco usage. 
 
 Follow USA TODAY reporter Nathan Bomey on Twitter @NathanBomey. 
 
 Read or Share this story: https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2018/10/25/altria-group-flavored-vaping-liquid/1759794002/
– E-cigarette users will soon have slightly fewer options. Altria, parent company of Marlboro maker Phillip Morris USA, announced Thursday that it will stop selling e-cigarette refill pods and most of its flavored e-cigarette products, the Wall Street Journal reports. During a call with analysts, CEO Howard Willard said that the company is concerned about youth access to e-cigarettes, per Market Watch, and will stop selling the products until the FDA makes a final ruling on them or youth access to e-cigs is otherwise addressed "We're taking this action because we don't want to risk contributing to the issue," he said. Studies show that more than 2 million kids and teens use nicotine vaping devices, according to USA Today. And they are attracted to flavors, such as strawberry brulee and hazelnut cream, that sound more like they belong to desserts and specialty drinks than to tobacco products. The affected Altria products include MarkTen Elite, Apex by MarkTen, and all flavored products, except for tobacco flavor, menthol, and mint. A spokesman for the FDA, which has threatened to ban flavored e-cig products, tells the WSJ that it "appreciates any voluntary steps companies can take to address the youth access and appeal of e-cigarettes." The paper notes that Altria's move puts pressure on Juul, which dominates the e-cigarette market through selling flavored pods. Juul did not comment on the story. (E-cigarettes have been known to explode.)