British American Tobacco p.l.c. $BTI Shares Purchased by Royal Bank of Canada

Royal Bank of Canada boosted its stake in British American Tobacco p.l.c. (NYSE:BTI) by 18.1% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 2,413,551 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 369,993 shares during the quarter. Royal Bank of Canada’s holdings in British American Tobacco were worth $141,120,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wealth High Governance Capital Ltda bought a new position in British American Tobacco during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $6,911,000. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of British American Tobacco by 284.8% in the 4th quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 26,274 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,488,000 after purchasing an additional 19,446 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. grew its holdings in shares of British American Tobacco by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 557,887 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,588,000 after purchasing an additional 23,141 shares during the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp raised its position in British American Tobacco by 74.6% in the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 102,703 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,815,000 after purchasing an additional 43,886 shares during the period. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its position in British American Tobacco by 1,039.9% during the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 27,130 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,586,000 after buying an additional 24,750 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 16.16% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating on shares of British American Tobacco in a report on Monday, June 8th. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating on shares of British American Tobacco in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. BTIG Research began coverage on shares of British American Tobacco in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of British American Tobacco from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of British American Tobacco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, June 13th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $51.00.

British American Tobacco Price Performance

British American Tobacco stock opened at $61.68 on Friday. British American Tobacco p.l.c. has a fifty-two week low of $49.88 and a fifty-two week high of $67.30. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $61.28 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $60.24. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66.

British American Tobacco Company Profile

British American Tobacco plc (BTI) is a multinational tobacco manufacturer and nicotine products company headquartered in London. Founded in 1902 as a joint venture to commercialize tobacco products outside the United States, the company has grown into one of the world’s largest tobacco firms with a long history in manufacturing and global distribution of combustible tobacco products.

BAT’s core business remains the manufacture and sale of cigarettes and other tobacco products under a portfolio of well-known consumer brands, including Dunhill, Lucky Strike, Pall Mall, Kent and Rothmans.