An apparatus for transfer of successive cigarettes which are delivered seriatim to a first station by moving them axially to a second station from which the cigarettes are removed by advancing them sideways has a planetary transmission with a rotary planet carrier for a set of equidistant planet pinions each connected to a hollow crank arm for a discrete article receiving device. The pinions are rotated by a stationary sun gear when the carrier is driven whereby the receiving devices travel along an endless path a portion of which extends between the first and second stations. The receiving devices are held against changes in orientation during travel along the endless path by crank units and torque transmitting units. The crank units are turned back and forth by a driven holder which indirectly rotates the carrier through the medium of the crank units, and each crank unit rotates the corresponding torque transmitting unit which latter is connected to and turns the corresponding receiving device. The torque transmitting units are installed in the interior of the respective crank arms and each thereof has a cardanic shaft one end portion of which is connected with the corresponding crank unit by a first universal joint and the other end portion of which is connected to the respective receiving device by a second universal joint.