Moran Wealth Management LLC Decreases Holdings in British American Tobacco p.l.c. (NYSE:BTI)

Moran Wealth Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of British American Tobacco p.l.c. (NYSE:BTI - Free Report) by 3.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 159,215 shares of the company's stock after selling 6,328 shares during the period. Moran Wealth Management LLC's holdings in British American Tobacco were worth $6,587,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Capital International Investors raised its stake in British American Tobacco by 17.1% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 38,873,006 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,411,179,000 after buying an additional 5,673,619 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of British American Tobacco by 44.0% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 10,232,402 shares of the company's stock valued at $371,641,000 after acquiring an additional 3,127,046 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can grew its position in shares of British American Tobacco by 2,565.4% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 2,079,322 shares of the company's stock valued at $75,521,000 after acquiring an additional 2,001,311 shares during the period. Bridgewater Associates LP grew its position in shares of British American Tobacco by 261.7% during the 4th quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 2,681,379 shares of the company's stock valued at $97,388,000 after acquiring an additional 1,940,035 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of British American Tobacco during the 4th quarter valued at $55,620,000. 16.16% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on BTI. Bank of America began coverage on shares of British American Tobacco in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. They set a "buy" rating for the company. Barclays reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of British American Tobacco in a research report on Friday, June 13th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of British American Tobacco from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $33.00.

British American Tobacco Price Performance

BTI stock traded down $1.10 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $47.00. The company had a trading volume of 6,884,630 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,169,575. The company has a market capitalization of $97.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.65, a P/E/G ratio of 3.94 and a beta of 0.31. British American Tobacco p.l.c. has a 12-month low of $30.94 and a 12-month high of $49.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $45.20 and a 200 day moving average price of $41.22.

British American Tobacco Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be paid a $0.7391 dividend. This represents a yield of 5.99%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 27th. British American Tobacco's payout ratio is currently 65.09%.

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.