Crawford Investment Counsel Inc. Raises Stake in British American Tobacco p.l.c. $BTI

Crawford Investment Counsel Inc. increased its stake in British American Tobacco p.l.c. (NYSE:BTI) by 5.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 373,483 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 19,903 shares during the quarter. Crawford Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in British American Tobacco were worth $21,147,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. &PARTNERS raised its stake in British American Tobacco by 17.5% in the 4th quarter. &PARTNERS now owns 111,027 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,288,000 after acquiring an additional 16,556 shares during the period. ExodusPoint Capital Management LP bought a new stake in British American Tobacco in the 4th quarter valued at about $15,651,000. Night Squared LP bought a new stake in British American Tobacco in the 4th quarter valued at about $9,396,000. Nicholas Wealth LLC. raised its stake in British American Tobacco by 15.6% in the 4th quarter. Nicholas Wealth LLC. now owns 19,175 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,086,000 after acquiring an additional 2,588 shares during the period. Finally, Adalta Capital Management LLC raised its stake in British American Tobacco by 39.6% in the 4th quarter. Adalta Capital Management LLC now owns 15,515 shares of the company’s stock valued at $891,000 after acquiring an additional 4,405 shares during the period. 16.16% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on BTI. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating on shares of British American Tobacco in a research note on Monday, June 8th. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating on shares of British American Tobacco in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. Wall Street Zen cut British American Tobacco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded British American Tobacco from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $51.00.

British American Tobacco Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of BTI opened at $61.38 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $60.51 and its 200-day moving average price is $59.28. British American Tobacco p.l.c. has a twelve month low of $46.38 and a twelve month high of $67.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66.

British American Tobacco 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.