British American Tobacco p.l.c. $BTI Shares Sold by Smartleaf Asset Management LLC

Key Points

• Smartleaf Asset Management LLC reduced its stake in British American Tobacco p.l.c. by 33.9% during the first quarter, leaving it with 9,153 shares valued at $371,000.
• Other institutional investors, such as Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton and Golden State Wealth Management LLC, increased their investments in British American Tobacco by significant percentages, further highlighting shifting investor sentiment.
• British American Tobacco recently declared a dividend with a yield of 599.0%, despite fluctuations in its stock price and ratings from research firms, including an average target price of $40.00.

Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lessened its holdings in shares of British American Tobacco p.l.c. (NYSE:BTI - Free Report) by 33.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 9,153 shares of the company's stock after selling 4,686 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC's holdings in British American Tobacco were worth $371,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton increased its position in British American Tobacco by 87.0% during the first quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 602 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 280 shares during the period. Golden State Wealth Management LLC increased its position in British American Tobacco by 100.0% during the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 610 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 305 shares during the period. Ameriflex Group Inc. acquired a new position in British American Tobacco during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Financial Management Professionals Inc. increased its position in British American Tobacco by 78.5% during the first quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. now owns 632 shares of the company's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 278 shares during the period. Finally, Mather Group LLC. increased its position in British American Tobacco by 292.7% during the first quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 644 shares of the company's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 480 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 16.16% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BTI has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen lowered British American Tobacco from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. Barclays reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of British American Tobacco in a research note on Friday, June 13th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "underweight" rating and set a $40.00 target price on shares of British American Tobacco in a research note on Friday, August 15th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on British American Tobacco in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. They issued a "buy" rating on the stock. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $40.00.

British American Tobacco Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:BTI traded up $0.64 during trading on Friday, reaching $56.85. The company had a trading volume of 3,810,494 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,525,530. The firm has a market capitalization of $117.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.55. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $53.16 and its 200 day moving average price is $46.25. British American Tobacco p.l.c. has a fifty-two week low of $34.17 and a fifty-two week 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.