14,004 Shares in British American Tobacco p.l.c. (NYSE:BTI) Acquired by China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd.

China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of British American Tobacco p.l.c. (NYSE:BTI - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 14,004 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $590,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC lifted its position in British American Tobacco by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 493,451 shares of the company's stock valued at $17,922,000 after purchasing an additional 7,875 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its position in British American Tobacco by 24.4% during the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 6,094,244 shares of the company's stock valued at $221,343,000 after purchasing an additional 1,196,020 shares during the last quarter. Cove Street Capital LLC bought a new position in British American Tobacco during the fourth quarter valued at $1,050,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its position in British American Tobacco by 21.8% during the fourth quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 82,029 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,979,000 after purchasing an additional 14,655 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in British American Tobacco by 20.8% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 159,363 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,788,000 after purchasing an additional 27,492 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 16.16% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Barclays reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of British American Tobacco in a research report on Friday, June 13th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of British American Tobacco in a research note on Wednesday. They issued a "buy" rating on the stock. Bank of America started coverage on shares of British American Tobacco in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. They issued a "buy" rating on the stock. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of British American Tobacco from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, July 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, British American Tobacco currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $33.00.

British American Tobacco Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of NYSE:BTI traded up $0.35 during trading on Friday, reaching $51.17. The stock had a trading volume of 7,858,501 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,286,749. British American Tobacco p.l.c. has a one year low of $31.92 and a one year high of $51.35. The company has a market capitalization of $105.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.51, a PEG ratio of 4.71 and a beta of 0.33. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $46.36 and its 200 day simple moving average is $42.03.

British American Tobacco Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be issued a $0.7391 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 5.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 27th. British American Tobacco's dividend payout ratio is currently 60.57%.

British American Tobacco Company Profile

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.