UPDATE 2-Philip Morris Int'l profit up, raises forecast

(Adds analyst comment, share activity, byline)

By Brad Dorfman

CHICAGO, April 23 (Reuters) - Marlboro cigarette maker Philip Morris International Inc (PM.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) on Wednesday posted better-than-expected quarterly profit, helped by the weak dollar and better pricing in Poland, Russia and Turkey.

The company, which was spun off from Altria Group Inc (MO.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) at the end of March, also raised its full-year earnings forecast, citing favorable foreign exchange rates and other factors.

The world's largest non-state-owned cigarette maker posted double-digit revenue and profit increases in all its regions, and its stock rose more than 3.5 percent.

"The results reinforce our view that PM should be viewed as a premier tobacco company with healthy top-line and profit growth prospects," Judy Hong, an analyst at Goldman Sachs, said in a research note. "Both net revenue and operating profit came in higher than expected, partly due to currency benefits, but also driven by stronger price/mix and margin improvement."

The company said first-quarter profit of $1.87 billion, or 89 cents a share, compared with proforma results of $1.45 billion, or 69 cents a share, a year earlier.

Earnings-per-share figures for the 2007 quarter are based on the number of shares distributed by Altria in the spin-off.

Analysts on average forecast 77 cents a share, according to Reuters Estimates.