British American Tobacco (LON:BATS) Shares Cross Above 200 Day Moving Average – Here’s Why

British American Tobacco p.l.c. (LON:BATS) shares crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of GBX 2,738.81 ($34.02) and traded as high as GBX 2,981 ($37.03). British American Tobacco shares last traded at GBX 2,973 ($36.93), with a volume of 3,903,957 shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and set a GBX 2,800 ($34.78) price target on shares of British American Tobacco in a research note on Thursday, December 12th.

British American Tobacco Stock Up 0.7 %

The firm has a market capitalization of £65.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -477.97, a P/E/G ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a quick ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 74.14. The company’s 50 day moving average price is GBX 2,862.45 and its 200 day moving average price is GBX 2,740.43.

British American Tobacco Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, December 19th will be issued a dividend of GBX 58.88 ($0.73) per share. This represents a dividend yield of 2.54%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 19th. This is a boost from British American Tobacco’s previous dividend of $57.72. British American Tobacco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -3,794.21%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Tadeu Marroco purchased 48 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The shares were purchased at an average price of GBX 2,716 ($33.74) per share, with a total value of £1,303.68 ($1,619.48). Insiders purchased a total of 58 shares of company stock valued at $159,163 in the last quarter. 10.55% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About British American Tobacco

BAT was founded in 1902 and was first listed on the London Stock Exchange in 1912. A constituent of the FTSE 100 since its creation in 1984, we have evolved, becoming the only truly global company in our sector.

BAT is transforming and is well positioned with a global footprint and multi-category portfolio.