Juul co-founder and chief product officer James Monsees Photo by Steve Jennings/Getty Images for TechCrunch

According to a Bloomberg report, Juul – the company known for electronic cigarettes that has drawn controversy regarding use by teens and an investigation by the FDA – is expecting some $3.4 billion in 2019 revenue, an indication of high sales even as the company faces scrutiny and backlash. Citing a person briefed on the numbers, Bloomberg says Juul posted 2018 fourth quarter revenue of $424 million and $70.4 million adjusted loss, compared with $17 million profit in the prior quarter.

In November, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) placed restrictions on sales of flavored e-cigarettes. It banned sales of most flavored electronic cigarettes at most conventional retail outlets like convenience stores, leaving buyers only with the option of purchasing at age-restricted stores or via online merchants that make use of age verification checks.

Juul pods image : Juul

According to Bloomberg, $3.4 billion is nearly triple revenue generated by Juul last year (said to be $1.3 billion). Juul also sells its e-cigarettes in countries outside the US, with the company said to have told investors that revenue in Q4 2018 would have been lower if not for overseas gains. Juul caught the eyes of many after a 35% stake purchase by Altria – one of the world’s largest tobacco products manufacturers – for $12.8 billion in December.

Altria’s deal led to a $2 billion bonus split among Juul’s 1,500 employees and also placed a $38 billion valuation on Juul, enough to catapult it into a position of the third highest valued private startup in the U.S, ahead of the likes of Airbnb, SpaceX and Stripe (CB Insights data). Altria told analysts that Juul generated a lesser $200 million in 2017, indicating big annual jumps in revenue for the company.

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