British American Tobacco (NYSE:BTI) Shares Down 3% – Time to Sell?

British American Tobacco p.l.c. (NYSE:BTI)’s stock price traded down 3% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $39.83 and last traded at $39.87. 1,759,593 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 61% from the average session volume of 4,566,842 shares. The stock had previously closed at $41.10.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. UBS Group upgraded British American Tobacco from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. StockNews.com upgraded British American Tobacco from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 17th.

British American Tobacco Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $82.81 billion, a PE ratio of 8.21 and a beta of 0.50. The business’s 50-day moving average is $40.05 and its 200 day moving average is $37.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.76.

British American Tobacco Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Investors of record on Friday, March 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.7491 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 28th. British American Tobacco’s dividend payout ratio is currently 60.57%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On British American Tobacco

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Capital International Investors boosted its position in shares of British American Tobacco by 17.1% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 38,873,006 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,411,179,000 after purchasing an additional 5,673,619 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its position in 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 boosted its stake in British American Tobacco by 2,565.4% during the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 2,079,322 shares of the company’s stock worth $75,521,000 after acquiring an additional 2,001,311 shares in the last quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP grew its holdings in British American Tobacco by 261.7% in the fourth quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 2,681,379 shares of the company’s stock worth $97,388,000 after purchasing an additional 1,940,035 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in British American Tobacco during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $55,620,000. 16.16% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.