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British American Tobacco (BATS) Competitors

British American Tobacco logo
GBX 4,723.99 +6.99 (+0.15%)
As of 12:07 PM Eastern

BATS vs. IMB, ULVR, BMK, DGE, and CCEP

Should you buy British American Tobacco stock or one of its competitors? MarketBeat compares British American Tobacco with other companies and stocks that may be similar based on industry, sector, market capitalization, business model, investor interest, or shared news coverage. Companies and stocks commonly compared with British American Tobacco include Imperial Brands (IMB), Unilever (ULVR), Benchmark (BMK), Diageo (DGE), and Coca-Cola Europacific Partners (CCEP). These companies are all part of the "consumer defensive" sector.

How does British American Tobacco compare to Imperial Brands?

British American Tobacco (LON:BATS) and Imperial Brands (LON:IMB) are both large-cap consumer defensive companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, valuation, analyst recommendations, risk, media sentiment, earnings, dividends and institutional ownership.

In the previous week, British American Tobacco had 10 more articles in the media than Imperial Brands. MarketBeat recorded 12 mentions for British American Tobacco and 2 mentions for Imperial Brands. Imperial Brands' average media sentiment score of 0.00 beat British American Tobacco's score of -0.06 indicating that Imperial Brands is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company Very Positive Positive Neutral Negative Very Negative Overall Sentiment
British American Tobacco
1 Very Positive mention(s)
0 Positive mention(s)
3 Neutral mention(s)
8 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Neutral
Imperial Brands
1 Very Positive mention(s)
0 Positive mention(s)
1 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Neutral

British American Tobacco has a net margin of 30.23% compared to Imperial Brands' net margin of 8.96%. Imperial Brands' return on equity of 39.24% beat British American Tobacco's return on equity.

Company Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets
British American Tobacco30.23% 16.33% 5.16%
Imperial Brands 8.96%39.24%6.92%

British American Tobacco has a beta of 0.125, indicating that its share price is 88% less volatile than the broader market. Comparatively, Imperial Brands has a beta of 0.151, indicating that its share price is 85% less volatile than the broader market.

75.6% of British American Tobacco shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 80.9% of Imperial Brands shares are held by institutional investors. 0.1% of British American Tobacco shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.5% of Imperial Brands shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Imperial Brands has higher revenue and earnings than British American Tobacco. Imperial Brands is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than British American Tobacco, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

CompanyGross RevenuePrice/Sales RatioNet IncomeEarnings Per SharePrice/Earnings Ratio
British American Tobacco£25.61B3.99-£13.64B£349.1013.53
Imperial Brands£32.29B0.67£1.98B£212.6013.10

British American Tobacco presently has a consensus target price of GBX 4,758.33, suggesting a potential upside of 0.73%. Imperial Brands has a consensus target price of GBX 3,433.33, suggesting a potential upside of 23.31%. Given Imperial Brands' stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Imperial Brands is more favorable than British American Tobacco.

Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score
British American Tobacco
1 Sell rating(s)
1 Hold rating(s)
4 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.50
Imperial Brands
0 Sell rating(s)
2 Hold rating(s)
5 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.71

British American Tobacco pays an annual dividend of GBX 240.24 per share and has a dividend yield of 5.1%. Imperial Brands pays an annual dividend of GBX 160.32 per share and has a dividend yield of 5.8%. British American Tobacco pays out 68.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Imperial Brands pays out 75.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future.

Summary

Imperial Brands beats British American Tobacco on 12 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

How does British American Tobacco compare to Unilever?

Unilever (LON:ULVR) and British American Tobacco (LON:BATS) are both large-cap consumer defensive companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, valuation, institutional ownership, dividends, media sentiment, profitability, earnings and risk.

Unilever presently has a consensus price target of GBX 3,821.32, indicating a potential downside of 15.60%. British American Tobacco has a consensus price target of GBX 4,758.33, indicating a potential upside of 0.73%. Given British American Tobacco's stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe British American Tobacco is more favorable than Unilever.

Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score
Unilever
2 Sell rating(s)
3 Hold rating(s)
1 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
1.83
British American Tobacco
1 Sell rating(s)
1 Hold rating(s)
4 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.50

Unilever has a beta of 0.45, meaning that its share price is 55% less volatile than the broader market. Comparatively, British American Tobacco has a beta of 0.125, meaning that its share price is 88% less volatile than the broader market.

In the previous week, British American Tobacco had 10 more articles in the media than Unilever. MarketBeat recorded 12 mentions for British American Tobacco and 2 mentions for Unilever. Unilever's average media sentiment score of 0.00 beat British American Tobacco's score of -0.06 indicating that Unilever is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company Very Positive Positive Neutral Negative Very Negative Overall Sentiment
Unilever
0 Very Positive mention(s)
0 Positive mention(s)
2 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Neutral
British American Tobacco
1 Very Positive mention(s)
0 Positive mention(s)
3 Neutral mention(s)
8 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Neutral

British American Tobacco has a net margin of 30.23% compared to Unilever's net margin of 12.25%. Unilever's return on equity of 26.01% beat British American Tobacco's return on equity.

Company Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets
Unilever12.25% 26.01% 8.62%
British American Tobacco 30.23%16.33%5.16%

Unilever has higher revenue and earnings than British American Tobacco. Unilever is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than British American Tobacco, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

CompanyGross RevenuePrice/Sales RatioNet IncomeEarnings Per SharePrice/Earnings Ratio
Unilever£50.50B1.94£7.79B£432.0010.48
British American Tobacco£25.61B3.99-£13.64B£349.1013.53

Unilever pays an annual dividend of GBX 204.51 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.5%. British American Tobacco pays an annual dividend of GBX 240.24 per share and has a dividend yield of 5.1%. Unilever pays out 47.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. British American Tobacco pays out 68.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years.

45.8% of Unilever shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 75.6% of British American Tobacco shares are held by institutional investors. 1.4% of Unilever shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.1% of British American Tobacco shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Unilever and British American Tobacco tied by winning 9 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

How does British American Tobacco compare to Benchmark?

British American Tobacco (LON:BATS) and Benchmark (LON:BMK) are both large-cap consumer defensive companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, media sentiment, profitability, institutional ownership, dividends, earnings, analyst recommendations and valuation.

Benchmark has lower revenue, but higher earnings than British American Tobacco. British American Tobacco is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Benchmark, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

CompanyGross RevenuePrice/Sales RatioNet IncomeEarnings Per SharePrice/Earnings Ratio
British American Tobacco£25.61B3.99-£13.64B£349.1013.53
Benchmark£79.16M1,189.43-£39.55M£0.06246,774.19

British American Tobacco has a beta of 0.125, meaning that its share price is 88% less volatile than the broader market. Comparatively, Benchmark has a beta of 0.69, meaning that its share price is 31% less volatile than the broader market.

In the previous week, British American Tobacco had 12 more articles in the media than Benchmark. MarketBeat recorded 12 mentions for British American Tobacco and 0 mentions for Benchmark. Benchmark's average media sentiment score of 0.00 beat British American Tobacco's score of -0.06 indicating that Benchmark is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company Overall Sentiment
British American Tobacco Neutral
Benchmark Neutral

Benchmark has a net margin of 188.33% compared to British American Tobacco's net margin of 30.23%. Benchmark's return on equity of 29.28% beat British American Tobacco's return on equity.

Company Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets
British American Tobacco30.23% 16.33% 5.16%
Benchmark 188.33%29.28%-1.07%

British American Tobacco currently has a consensus target price of GBX 4,758.33, indicating a potential upside of 0.73%. Given British American Tobacco's stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts clearly believe British American Tobacco is more favorable than Benchmark.

Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score
British American Tobacco
1 Sell rating(s)
1 Hold rating(s)
4 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.50
Benchmark
0 Sell rating(s)
0 Hold rating(s)
0 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
0.00

75.6% of British American Tobacco shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 13.3% of Benchmark shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.1% of British American Tobacco shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 63.7% of Benchmark shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

British American Tobacco and Benchmark tied by winning 8 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

How does British American Tobacco compare to Diageo?

British American Tobacco (LON:BATS) and Diageo (LON:DGE) are both large-cap consumer defensive companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, valuation, dividends, profitability, institutional ownership, media sentiment, earnings and analyst recommendations.

British American Tobacco pays an annual dividend of GBX 240.24 per share and has a dividend yield of 5.1%. Diageo pays an annual dividend of GBX 102.70 per share and has a dividend yield of 6.7%. British American Tobacco pays out 68.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Diageo pays out 94.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future.

British American Tobacco has a beta of 0.125, suggesting that its share price is 88% less volatile than the broader market. Comparatively, Diageo has a beta of 0.303, suggesting that its share price is 70% less volatile than the broader market.

Diageo has lower revenue, but higher earnings than British American Tobacco. British American Tobacco is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Diageo, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

CompanyGross RevenuePrice/Sales RatioNet IncomeEarnings Per SharePrice/Earnings Ratio
British American Tobacco£25.61B3.99-£13.64B£349.1013.53
Diageo£19.80B1.73£3.96B£108.2014.25

British American Tobacco currently has a consensus target price of GBX 4,758.33, indicating a potential upside of 0.73%. Diageo has a consensus target price of GBX 4,554.88, indicating a potential upside of 195.36%. Given Diageo's stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Diageo is more favorable than British American Tobacco.

Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score
British American Tobacco
1 Sell rating(s)
1 Hold rating(s)
4 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.50
Diageo
0 Sell rating(s)
3 Hold rating(s)
5 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.63

In the previous week, British American Tobacco had 8 more articles in the media than Diageo. MarketBeat recorded 12 mentions for British American Tobacco and 4 mentions for Diageo. Diageo's average media sentiment score of 0.22 beat British American Tobacco's score of -0.06 indicating that Diageo is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company Very Positive Positive Neutral Negative Very Negative Overall Sentiment
British American Tobacco
1 Very Positive mention(s)
0 Positive mention(s)
3 Neutral mention(s)
8 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Neutral
Diageo
0 Very Positive mention(s)
1 Positive mention(s)
1 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Neutral

British American Tobacco has a net margin of 30.23% compared to Diageo's net margin of 12.18%. Diageo's return on equity of 21.39% beat British American Tobacco's return on equity.

Company Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets
British American Tobacco30.23% 16.33% 5.16%
Diageo 12.18%21.39%8.30%

75.6% of British American Tobacco shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 61.2% of Diageo shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.1% of British American Tobacco shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.2% of Diageo shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Diageo beats British American Tobacco on 11 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

How does British American Tobacco compare to Coca-Cola Europacific Partners?

British American Tobacco (LON:BATS) and Coca-Cola Europacific Partners (LON:CCEP) are both large-cap consumer defensive companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, profitability, risk, analyst recommendations, media sentiment, institutional ownership, dividends and earnings.

British American Tobacco presently has a consensus price target of GBX 4,758.33, suggesting a potential upside of 0.73%. Coca-Cola Europacific Partners has a consensus price target of GBX 8,320, suggesting a potential upside of 9.91%. Given Coca-Cola Europacific Partners' stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Coca-Cola Europacific Partners is more favorable than British American Tobacco.

Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score
British American Tobacco
1 Sell rating(s)
1 Hold rating(s)
4 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.50
Coca-Cola Europacific Partners
0 Sell rating(s)
0 Hold rating(s)
1 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
3.00

In the previous week, British American Tobacco had 11 more articles in the media than Coca-Cola Europacific Partners. MarketBeat recorded 12 mentions for British American Tobacco and 1 mentions for Coca-Cola Europacific Partners. Coca-Cola Europacific Partners' average media sentiment score of 0.00 beat British American Tobacco's score of -0.06 indicating that Coca-Cola Europacific Partners is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company Very Positive Positive Neutral Negative Very Negative Overall Sentiment
British American Tobacco
1 Very Positive mention(s)
0 Positive mention(s)
3 Neutral mention(s)
8 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Neutral
Coca-Cola Europacific Partners
0 Very Positive mention(s)
0 Positive mention(s)
1 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Neutral

Coca-Cola Europacific Partners has lower revenue, but higher earnings than British American Tobacco. British American Tobacco is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Coca-Cola Europacific Partners, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

CompanyGross RevenuePrice/Sales RatioNet IncomeEarnings Per SharePrice/Earnings Ratio
British American Tobacco£25.61B3.99-£13.64B£349.1013.53
Coca-Cola Europacific Partners£20.90B1.60£1.94B£426.0017.77

British American Tobacco has a net margin of 30.23% compared to Coca-Cola Europacific Partners' net margin of 9.29%. Coca-Cola Europacific Partners' return on equity of 24.39% beat British American Tobacco's return on equity.

Company Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets
British American Tobacco30.23% 16.33% 5.16%
Coca-Cola Europacific Partners 9.29%24.39%4.80%

British American Tobacco has a beta of 0.125, indicating that its share price is 88% less volatile than the broader market. Comparatively, Coca-Cola Europacific Partners has a beta of 0.475, indicating that its share price is 53% less volatile than the broader market.

75.6% of British American Tobacco shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 20.9% of Coca-Cola Europacific Partners shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.1% of British American Tobacco shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 17.3% of Coca-Cola Europacific Partners shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

British American Tobacco pays an annual dividend of GBX 240.24 per share and has a dividend yield of 5.1%. Coca-Cola Europacific Partners pays an annual dividend of GBX 204 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.7%. British American Tobacco pays out 68.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Coca-Cola Europacific Partners pays out 47.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years.

Summary

Coca-Cola Europacific Partners beats British American Tobacco on 10 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

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New MarketBeat Followers Over Time

This chart shows the number of new MarketBeat users adding BATS and its top 5 competitors to their watchlist. Each company is represented with a line over a 90 day period.
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Media Sentiment Over Time

This chart shows the average media sentiment of LON and its competitors over the past 90 days as caculated by MarketBeat. The averaged score is equivalent to the following: Very Negative Sentiment <= -1.5, Negative Sentiment > -1.5 and <= -0.5, Neutral Sentiment > -0.5 and < 0.5, Positive Sentiment >= 0.5 and < 1.5, and Very Positive Sentiment >= 1.5.
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BATS vs. The Competition

MetricBritish American TobaccoTobacco IndustryDefensive SectorLON Exchange
Market Cap£102.11B£69.59B£8.48B£2.78B
Dividend Yield5.16%4.12%3.16%6.14%
P/E Ratio13.538.73891.52366.57
Price / Sales3.9944.35992,148.6086,538.73
Price / Cash18.6414.19140.9127.87
Price / Book1.9416.899.337.73
Net Income-£13.64B£2.09B£1.03B£5.89B
7 Day Performance3.03%-3.64%0.01%-0.16%
1 Month Performance2.90%-7.48%0.16%-1.78%
1 Year Performance36.43%5.39%249.73%65.34%

British American Tobacco Competitors List

CompanyMarketRankShare PriceAnalysts' Price Target1Y Price PerformanceMarket CapRevenueP/E RatioEmployee CountIndicator(s)
BATS
British American Tobacco
2.2249 of 5 stars
GBX 4,723.99
+0.1%
GBX 4,758.33
+0.7%
+37.1%£102.11B£25.61B13.5352,000
IMB
Imperial Brands
4.0436 of 5 stars
GBX 2,760
+0.8%
GBX 3,433.33
+24.4%
-1.7%£21.31B£32.29B12.9825,200
ULVR
Unilever
1.1663 of 5 stars
GBX 4,414.50
+0.5%
GBX 3,821.32
-13.4%
+3.3%£95.59B£50.50B10.22148,000
BMK
Benchmark
N/A£153
-0.6%
N/A+63,650.0%£94.15B£79.16M246,774.19823
DGE
Diageo
4.3115 of 5 stars
GBX 1,536.50
+1.3%
GBX 2,012.50
+31.0%
-13.5%£34.17B£19.80B14.2030,269

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This page (LON:BATS) was last updated on 6/30/2026 by MarketBeat.com Staff.
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