Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Raises Stock Holdings in British American Tobacco p.l.c. $BTI

Key Points

• Massachusetts Financial Services boosted its stake in British American Tobacco by 43.6% in Q4, adding 171,831 shares to hold 565,723 shares valued at about $32.03 million.
• Several other large institutions (Capital International, Capital Research, Orbis Allan Gray, Capital World Investors and Bank of America) also raised positions, leaving institutional ownership at roughly 16.16%.
• BAT declared a quarterly dividend of $0.8349 ($3.34 annualized), implying a 5.9% yield

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its position in shares of British American Tobacco p.l.c. (NYSE:BTI - Free Report) by 43.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 565,723 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 171,831 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA's holdings in British American Tobacco were worth $32,031,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Capital International Investors raised its holdings in shares of British American Tobacco by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 64,057,419 shares of the company's stock worth $3,399,352,000 after acquiring an additional 1,891,042 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors raised its holdings in shares of British American Tobacco by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 22,068,891 shares of the company's stock worth $1,171,399,000 after acquiring an additional 559,189 shares in the last quarter. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd raised its holdings in shares of British American Tobacco by 20.7% during the 2nd quarter. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd now owns 14,503,968 shares of the company's stock worth $686,473,000 after acquiring an additional 2,482,737 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors raised its holdings in shares of British American Tobacco by 12,870.7% during the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 9,470,709 shares of the company's stock worth $502,687,000 after acquiring an additional 9,397,693 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE raised its holdings in shares of British American Tobacco by 29.5% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 6,934,792 shares of the company's stock worth $368,099,000 after acquiring an additional 1,578,860 shares in the last quarter. 16.16% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on BTI. Weiss Ratings upgraded British American Tobacco from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Wall Street Zen lowered British American Tobacco from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, April 5th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, British American Tobacco has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $51.00.

British American Tobacco Stock Performance

NYSE:BTI opened at $56.70 on Thursday. The stock's fifty day moving average is $59.62 and its 200 day moving average is $56.92. British American Tobacco p.l.c. has a fifty-two week low of $40.12 and a fifty-two week high of $63.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a current ratio of 0.87.

British American Tobacco Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 8th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 29th will be issued a dividend of $0.8349 per share. This represents a $3.34 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.9%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 29th.

British American Tobacco Company Profile

British American Tobacco plc (BTI) is a multinational tobacco manufacturer and nicotine products company headquartered in London. Founded in 1902 as a joint venture to commercialize tobacco products outside the United States, the company has grown into one of the world's largest tobacco firms with a long history in manufacturing and global distribution of combustible tobacco products.

BAT's core business remains the manufacture and sale of cigarettes and other tobacco products under a portfolio of well-known consumer brands, including Dunhill, Lucky Strike, Pall Mall, Kent and Rothmans.

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