British American Tobacco p.l.c. $BTI is Orbis Allan Gray Ltd's 8th Largest Position

Key Points

• Orbis Allan Gray Ltd increased its stake in British American Tobacco p.l.c. by 20.4% in the first quarter, acquiring over 2 million additional shares, making it the 8th largest holding in their portfolio.
• Other institutional investors also increased their positions significantly, with some firms raising their stakes by over 100% during the same period.
• The stock has a current market cap of $117.09 billion and received mixed ratings from analysts, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a price target of $40.00.

Orbis Allan Gray Ltd boosted its stake in British American Tobacco p.l.c. (NYSE:BTI - Free Report) by 20.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,021,231 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 2,040,011 shares during the period. British American Tobacco makes up approximately 2.8% of Orbis Allan Gray Ltd's holdings, making the stock its 8th largest position. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd owned about 0.58% of British American Tobacco worth $497,318,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in BTI. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC lifted its holdings in shares of British American Tobacco by 14.1% in the fourth quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 14,710 shares of the company's stock worth $534,000 after buying an additional 1,820 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in British American Tobacco by 33.6% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,438,016 shares of the company's stock valued at $88,549,000 after acquiring an additional 612,907 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in British American Tobacco by 108.8% during the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 474,111 shares of the company's stock valued at $17,242,000 after acquiring an additional 247,018 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its holdings in British American Tobacco by 21.8% during the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 82,029 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,979,000 after acquiring an additional 14,655 shares during the period. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. boosted its holdings in British American Tobacco by 26.9% during the 4th quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 703,121 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,537,000 after acquiring an additional 148,867 shares during the period. 16.16% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on BTI shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded British American Tobacco from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, July 26th. Barclays restated an "overweight" rating on shares of British American Tobacco in a report on Friday, June 13th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered British American Tobacco from a "sector perform" rating to an "underperform" rating in a report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley restated an "underweight" rating and set a $40.00 target price on shares of British American Tobacco in a report on Friday, August 15th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on British American Tobacco in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. They set a "buy" rating for the company. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $40.00.

British American Tobacco Stock Performance

Shares of BTI stock traded down $1.68 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $55.21. The company's stock had a trading volume of 7,176,679 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,685,531. The company has a 50 day moving average of $53.32 and a 200 day moving average of $46.38. The stock has a market cap of $113.72 billion, a PE ratio of 11.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. British American Tobacco p.l.c. has a 12-month low of $34.17 and a 12-month high of $59.29.

About British American Tobacco

British American Tobacco p.l.c. engages in the provision of tobacco and nicotine products to consumers worldwide. It also offers vapour, heated, and modern oral nicotine products; combustible cigarettes; and traditional oral products, such as snus and moist snuff. The company offers its products under the Vuse, glo, Velo, Grizzly, Kodiak, Dunhill, Kent, Lucky Strike, Pall Mall, Rothmans, Camel, Natural American Spirit, Newport, Vogue, Viceroy, Kool, Peter Stuyvesant, Craven A, State Express 555 and Shuang Xi brands.