Imperial Brands (LON:IMB) Reaches New 1-Year High - Still a Buy?

Imperial Brands PLC (LON:IMB - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as GBX 2,902 ($36.94) and last traded at GBX 2,901 ($36.93), with a volume of 9326826 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at GBX 2,822 ($35.92).

Imperial Brands Stock Performance

The firm's 50 day simple moving average is GBX 2,776.81 and its 200 day simple moving average is GBX 2,546.68. The firm has a market cap of £23.26 billion, a PE ratio of 11.74, a PEG ratio of 16.51 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a current ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 166.91.

Imperial Brands Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, February 20th were given a GBX 54.26 ($0.69) dividend. This is an increase from Imperial Brands's previous dividend of $22.45. This represents a dividend yield of 2.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 20th. Imperial Brands's payout ratio is currently 64.80%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Imperial Brands

In other Imperial Brands news, insider Alan Johnson bought 1,397 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of GBX 2,862 ($36.43) per share, for a total transaction of £39,982.14 ($50,893.76). Also, insider Stefan Bomhard sold 112,183 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of GBX 2,788 ($35.49), for a total transaction of £3,127,662.04 ($3,981,239.87). 7.33% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Imperial Brands

We are Imperial Brands, a global consumer-focused organisation and the fourth largest international tobacco company. We're driven by our purpose: to forge a path to a healthier future for moments of relaxation and pleasure. The world's one billion adult smokers are seeking new and potentially less harmful products and we are committed to meeting their diverse and evolving needs.