British American Tobacco (LON:BATS) Stock Crosses Above 200 Day Moving Average - Here's Why

Key Points

• British American Tobacco shares moved above their 200-day moving average, trading as high as GBX 4,496 before last changing hands at GBX 4,462. The move came on volume of 4.42 million shares.
• Broker sentiment remains constructive, with UBS reiterating a buy rating and Jefferies lifting its price target to GBX 5,500. Overall, the stock has a Moderate Buy consensus and an average target of GBX 4,758.33.
• Recent insider buying included purchases by Serpil Timuray and Tadeu Marroco, adding to 11,506 shares bought by insiders over the last quarter. The company also has a market cap of £90.42 billion and a low beta of 0.13.

British American Tobacco p.l.c. (LON:BATS - Get Free Report)'s share price passed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of GBX 4,426.43 and traded as high as GBX 4,496. British American Tobacco shares last traded at GBX 4,462, with a volume of 4,420,989 shares trading hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on BATS. UBS Group reiterated a "buy" rating and set a GBX 5,750 price target on shares of British American Tobacco in a report on Friday, May 29th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on British American Tobacco from GBX 5,200 to GBX 5,500 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of GBX 4,758.33.

British American Tobacco Trading Down 0.8%

The company has a quick ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 74.60. The company has a market cap of £90.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.78, a PEG ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.13. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of GBX 4,597.41 and a two-hundred day moving average price of GBX 4,426.43.

Insider Activity at British American Tobacco

In other news, insider Serpil Timuray purchased 47 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was purchased at an average price of GBX 4,372 per share, for a total transaction of £2,054.84. Also, insider Tadeu Marroco purchased 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 5th. The stock was purchased at an average price of GBX 4,306 per share, for a total transaction of £215,300. Insiders purchased 11,506 shares of company stock worth $50,267,032 over the last quarter. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by company 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. Our corporate purpose is to build A Better Tomorrow™, reducing the health impact of our business, by offering adult consumers a greater choice of enjoyable and less risky*† products compared to cigarettes.

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