British American Tobacco Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:BTI)

British American Tobacco p.l.c. (NYSE:BTI) saw some unusual options trading activity on Thursday. Stock traders purchased 57,007 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 746% compared to the average volume of 6,737 call options.

British American Tobacco Trading Up 0.8 %

BTI traded up $0.32 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $41.14. 3,748,033 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,480,491. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $39.67 and a 200 day moving average price of $37.62. British American Tobacco has a 52-week low of $28.25 and a 52-week high of $42.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $85.21 billion, a PE ratio of 8.45 and a beta of 0.50.

British American Tobacco Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Investors of record on Friday, March 28th will be paid a $0.7491 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 28th. British American Tobacco’s dividend payout ratio is presently 60.57%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on BTI. StockNews.com upgraded shares of British American Tobacco from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 17th. UBS Group raised British American Tobacco from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th.

Institutional Trading of British American Tobacco

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Ameriflex Group Inc. bought a new stake in British American Tobacco during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of British American Tobacco by 294.9% in the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 703 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 525 shares in the last quarter. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in British American Tobacco in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Versant Capital Management Inc purchased a new position in British American Tobacco during the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. raised its holdings in shares of British American Tobacco by 334.4% in the 4th quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 1,099 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 846 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 16.16% of the company’s stock.

British American Tobacco Company Profile

British American Tobacco p.l.c. engages in the provision of tobacco and nicotine products to consumers worldwide. It also offers vapour, heated, and modern oral nicotine products; combustible cigarettes; and traditional oral products, such as snus and moist snuff. The company offers its products under the Vuse, glo, Velo, Grizzly, Kodiak, Dunhill, Kent, Lucky Strike, Pall Mall, Rothmans, Camel, Natural American Spirit, Newport, Vogue, Viceroy, Kool, Peter Stuyvesant, Craven A, State Express 555 and Shuang Xi brands.