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British American Tobacco (BATS) Competitors

British American Tobacco logo
GBX 4,952 +26.00 (+0.53%)
As of 06:53 AM Eastern

BATS vs. IMB, BMK, ULVR, 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), Benchmark (BMK), Unilever (ULVR), 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?

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

Imperial Brands pays an annual dividend of GBX 188.68 per share and has a dividend yield of 6.5%. British American Tobacco pays an annual dividend of GBX 240.24 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.9%. Imperial Brands pays out 75.7% 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 pays out 68.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend.

Imperial Brands has a beta of 0.168, suggesting that its share price is 83% less volatile than the broader market. Comparatively, British American Tobacco has a beta of 0.117, suggesting that its share price is 88% less volatile than the broader market.

Imperial Brands presently has a consensus target price of GBX 3,433.33, indicating a potential upside of 18.24%. British American Tobacco has a consensus target price of GBX 4,500, indicating a potential downside of 9.13%. Given Imperial Brands' stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Imperial Brands is more favorable than British American Tobacco.

Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score
Imperial Brands
0 Sell rating(s)
2 Hold rating(s)
5 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.71
British American Tobacco
1 Sell rating(s)
1 Hold rating(s)
3 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.40

80.9% of Imperial Brands shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 75.6% of British American Tobacco shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.5% of Imperial Brands shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.1% of British American Tobacco shares are owned 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.

In the previous week, Imperial Brands had 6 more articles in the media than British American Tobacco. MarketBeat recorded 10 mentions for Imperial Brands and 4 mentions for British American Tobacco. British American Tobacco's average media sentiment score of 0.73 beat Imperial Brands' score of 0.16 indicating that British American Tobacco is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

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

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
Imperial Brands8.96% 39.24% 6.92%
British American Tobacco 30.23%16.33%5.16%

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
Imperial Brands£32.29B0.70£1.98B£249.3011.65
British American Tobacco£25.61B4.18-£13.64B£349.1014.19

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 Benchmark?

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

In the previous week, British American Tobacco had 4 more articles in the media than Benchmark. MarketBeat recorded 4 mentions for British American Tobacco and 0 mentions for Benchmark. British American Tobacco's average media sentiment score of 0.73 beat Benchmark's score of 0.00 indicating that British American Tobacco is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company Overall Sentiment
British American Tobacco Positive
Benchmark Neutral

British American Tobacco has a beta of 0.117, meaning that its stock price is 88% less volatile than the broader market. Comparatively, Benchmark has a beta of 0.69, meaning that its stock price is 31% less volatile than the broader market.

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%

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£25.61B4.18-£13.64B£349.1014.19
Benchmark£79.16M1,189.43-£39.55M£0.06246,774.19

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, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

British American Tobacco currently has a consensus target price of GBX 4,500, indicating a potential downside of 9.13%. Given British American Tobacco's stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, 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)
3 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.40
Benchmark
0 Sell rating(s)
0 Hold rating(s)
0 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
0.00

Summary

British American Tobacco beats Benchmark on 9 of the 16 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 better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, earnings, risk, dividends, media sentiment, valuation, analyst recommendations and profitability.

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£50.50B1.87£7.79B£432.009.99
British American Tobacco£25.61B4.18-£13.64B£349.1014.19

Unilever currently has a consensus target price of GBX 3,921.32, indicating a potential downside of 9.16%. British American Tobacco has a consensus target price of GBX 4,500, indicating a potential downside of 9.13%. Given British American Tobacco's stronger consensus rating and higher possible 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)
3 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.40

In the previous week, British American Tobacco had 2 more articles in the media than Unilever. MarketBeat recorded 4 mentions for British American Tobacco and 2 mentions for Unilever. British American Tobacco's average media sentiment score of 0.73 beat Unilever's score of 0.00 indicating that British American Tobacco is being referred to more favorably in the news 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)
1 Positive mention(s)
2 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Positive

Unilever has a beta of 0.452, indicating that its share price is 55% less volatile than the broader market. Comparatively, British American Tobacco has a beta of 0.117, indicating that its share price is 88% less volatile than the broader market.

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 pays an annual dividend of GBX 204.51 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.7%. British American Tobacco pays an annual dividend of GBX 240.24 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.9%. 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.

50.6% of Unilever shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 75.6% of British American Tobacco shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.4% of Unilever shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.1% of British American Tobacco shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

British American Tobacco beats Unilever on 10 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

How does British American Tobacco compare to Diageo?

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

In the previous week, Diageo had 3 more articles in the media than British American Tobacco. MarketBeat recorded 7 mentions for Diageo and 4 mentions for British American Tobacco. Diageo's average media sentiment score of 1.28 beat British American Tobacco's score of 0.73 indicating that Diageo is being referred to more favorably in the media.

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

61.2% of Diageo shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 75.6% of British American Tobacco shares are held by institutional investors. 0.2% of Diageo 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 stock will outperform the market over the long term.

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
Diageo12.18% 21.39% 8.30%
British American Tobacco 30.23%16.33%5.16%

Diageo pays an annual dividend of GBX 102.70 per share and has a dividend yield of 6.5%. British American Tobacco pays an annual dividend of GBX 240.24 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.9%. 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 pays out 68.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend.

Diageo has higher earnings, but lower revenue 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
Diageo£19.80B1.77£3.96B£108.2014.53
British American Tobacco£25.61B4.18-£13.64B£349.1014.19

Diageo presently has a consensus target price of GBX 2,000, indicating a potential upside of 27.23%. British American Tobacco has a consensus target price of GBX 4,500, indicating a potential downside of 9.13%. Given Diageo's stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities analysts plainly believe Diageo is more favorable than British American Tobacco.

Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score
Diageo
0 Sell rating(s)
3 Hold rating(s)
5 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.63
British American Tobacco
1 Sell rating(s)
1 Hold rating(s)
3 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.40

Diageo has a beta of 0.304, suggesting that its share price is 70% less volatile than the broader market. Comparatively, British American Tobacco has a beta of 0.117, suggesting that its share price is 88% less volatile than the broader market.

Summary

Diageo beats British American Tobacco on 12 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 superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, dividends, risk, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, media sentiment, earnings and profitability.

British American Tobacco has a beta of 0.117, meaning that its share price is 88% less volatile than the broader market. Comparatively, Coca-Cola Europacific Partners has a beta of 0.493, meaning that its share price is 51% less volatile than the broader market.

In the previous week, British American Tobacco had 4 more articles in the media than Coca-Cola Europacific Partners. MarketBeat recorded 4 mentions for British American Tobacco and 0 mentions for Coca-Cola Europacific Partners. British American Tobacco's average media sentiment score of 0.73 beat Coca-Cola Europacific Partners' score of 0.00 indicating that British American Tobacco is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company Overall Sentiment
British American Tobacco Positive
Coca-Cola Europacific Partners Neutral

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%

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

British American Tobacco currently has a consensus price target of GBX 4,500, suggesting a potential downside of 9.13%. Coca-Cola Europacific Partners has a consensus price target of GBX 8,320, suggesting a potential upside of 20.84%. Given Coca-Cola Europacific Partners' stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly 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)
3 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.40
Coca-Cola Europacific Partners
0 Sell rating(s)
0 Hold rating(s)
1 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
3.00

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£25.61B4.18-£13.64B£349.1014.19
Coca-Cola Europacific Partners£20.90B1.46£1.94B£426.0016.16

British American Tobacco pays an annual dividend of GBX 240.24 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.9%. Coca-Cola Europacific Partners pays an annual dividend of GBX 204 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.0%. 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

British American Tobacco and Coca-Cola Europacific Partners tied by winning 9 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£107.15B£71.03B£8.33B£2.77B
Dividend Yield5.04%4.00%3.25%6.15%
P/E Ratio14.199.98894.33366.02
Price / Sales4.1846.57992,150.1987,889.69
Price / Cash18.6414.79140.8827.89
Price / Book2.0323.159.587.63
Net Income-£13.64B£2.09B£1.03B£5.89B
7 Day Performance6.79%2.98%0.12%0.61%
1 Month Performance19.56%5.62%-1.45%0.75%
1 Year Performance53.60%12.71%273.00%84.26%

British American Tobacco Competitors List

CompanyMarketRankShare PriceAnalysts' Price Target1Y Price PerformanceMarket CapRevenueP/E RatioEmployee CountIndicator(s)
BATS
British American Tobacco
2.15 of 5 stars
GBX 4,952
+0.5%
GBX 4,500
-9.1%
+54.6%£107.15B£25.61B14.1952,000
IMB
Imperial Brands
3.7617 of 5 stars
GBX 2,747.76
+0.7%
GBX 3,466.67
+26.2%
+6.8%£21.29B£32.17B11.0225,200
BMK
Benchmark
N/A£153
-0.6%
N/A+67,599.1%£94.15B£79.16M246,774.19823
ULVR
Unilever
1.3599 of 5 stars
GBX 4,232.50
+1.2%
GBX 3,921.32
-7.4%
-8.0%£92.43B£50.50B9.80148,000
DGE
Diageo
4.5241 of 5 stars
GBX 1,510.50
+0.7%
GBX 2,000
+32.4%
-27.9%£33.59B£19.80B13.9630,269

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This page (LON:BATS) was last updated on 5/19/2026 by MarketBeat.com Staff.
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