"It's an effort to give people information in the face of uncertainties," said Mark Cohen, a tobacco analyst with Goldman, Sachs.

Martin Feldman, a tobacco analyst for Salomon Brothers, called the quarter "reasonably good for the company."

Lawyers and tobacco analysts said that the government's chances of winning this case against the tobacco industry seemed slim.

Diana Temple, a tobacco analyst at Salomon Brothers in New York, agreed.

Martin Feldman, a tobacco analyst for Smith Barney, said sales of Winstons are up 12.5 percent nationwide since last fall.

This onslaught leaves the tobacco analysts undaunted.

Some tobacco analysts have been pessimistic about the outlook for profits as discount cigarettes account for a larger share of sales.

He is listed as the No. 2 tobacco analyst.

"They played this beautifully," Robert Campagnino, a senior tobacco analyst at Prudential Securities, said.

He attributed the information to his father, Lawrence, also a tobacco analyst at Dean Witter.