Jefferies Financial Group Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for British American Tobacco (LON:BATS) Stock

Key Points

• Jefferies Financial Group has raised the price target for British American Tobacco from GBX 4,800 to GBX 5,200, indicating a potential upside of 23.22% from the stock's previous close.
• Overall, British American Tobacco currently holds an average rating of "Moderate Buy" with an average target price of GBX 3,960.
• Recent insider activity shows that Tadeu Marroco, an insider, purchased 206 shares of the company, indicating confidence in the stock's potential.

British American Tobacco (LON:BATS - Get Free Report) had its price objective hoisted by investment analysts at Jefferies Financial Group from GBX 4,800 ($64.56) to GBX 5,200 ($69.94) in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm currently has a "buy" rating on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group's price target would suggest a potential upside of 22.99% from the company's current price.

A number of other research firms also recently issued reports on BATS. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on British American Tobacco from GBX 2,800 ($37.66) to GBX 3,300 ($44.38) and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, August 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on British American Tobacco from GBX 4,200 ($56.49) to GBX 4,400 ($59.18) and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and issued a GBX 3,000 ($40.35) target price on shares of British American Tobacco in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating on shares of British American Tobacco in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of GBX 3,960 ($53.26).

British American Tobacco Stock Up 0.9%

BATS traded up GBX 39 ($0.52) during trading on Tuesday, reaching GBX 4,228 ($56.87). The stock had a trading volume of 3,284,708 shares, compared to its average volume of 10,394,089. The stock's 50 day moving average is GBX 3,711.57 and its two-hundred day moving average is GBX 3,353.27. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 74.63. The company has a market capitalization of £93.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.82, a P/E/G ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.27. British American Tobacco has a one year low of GBX 2,556.23 ($34.38) and a one year high of GBX 4,244 ($57.08).

British American Tobacco (LON:BATS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported GBX 162.90 ($2.19) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. British American Tobacco had a negative return on equity of 25.94% and a negative net margin of 52.84%. As a group, analysts expect that British American Tobacco will post 361.5079365 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other British American Tobacco news, insider Soraya Benchikh acquired 55 shares of British American Tobacco stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 4th. The stock was bought at an average cost of GBX 4,131 ($55.56) per share, for a total transaction of £2,272.05 ($3,055.88). Also, insider Tadeu Marroco acquired 396 shares of British American Tobacco stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 4th. The stock was acquired at an average price of GBX 4,131 ($55.56) per share, with a total value of £16,358.76 ($22,002.37). Insiders purchased a total of 682 shares of company stock valued at $2,649,800 over the last quarter. 10.55% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

British American Tobacco Company Profile

BAT was founded in 1902 and was first listed on the London Stock Exchange in 1912. A constituent of the FTSE 100 since its creation in 1984, we have evolved, becoming the only truly global company in our sector. BAT is transforming and is well positioned with a global footprint and multi-category portfolio.