British American Tobacco (LON:BATS) Sets New 52-Week High - Time to Buy?

British American Tobacco p.l.c. (LON:BATS - Get Free Report)'s stock price reached a new 52-week high on Thursday . The company traded as high as GBX 3,185 ($39.65) and last traded at GBX 3,171 ($39.48), with a volume of 7446890 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at GBX 3,173 ($39.50).

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a GBX 2,800 ($34.86) price target on shares of British American Tobacco in a research note on Thursday, December 12th.

British American Tobacco Trading Up 0.2 %

The company has a market cap of £70.23 billion, a P/E ratio of -510.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.27. The stock has a 50-day moving average of GBX 2,956.16 and a two-hundred day moving average of GBX 2,810.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 74.14, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a current ratio of 0.88.

British American Tobacco Increases Dividend

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

Insider Activity at British American Tobacco

In other news, insider Tadeu Marroco purchased 48 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The shares were purchased at an average cost of GBX 2,716 ($33.81) per share, with a total value of £1,303.68 ($1,623.11). Insiders bought 63 shares of company stock valued at $173,913 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 10.55% of the company's stock.

British American Tobacco Company Profile

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.