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British American Tobacco ( (GB:BATS) ) just unveiled an update.
British American Tobacco has repurchased 96,992 of its 25 pence ordinary shares on 5 March 2026 from Banco Santander as part of its ongoing share buyback programme. The shares, bought at a volume-weighted average price of 4,443.6451p and earmarked for cancellation, will reduce the number of shares in issue to 2,174,355,823, potentially enhancing earnings per share and slightly increasing existing investors’ relative ownership stake.
Following this transaction, the company will also hold 132,976,327 shares in treasury, information the group flagged as relevant for investors monitoring voting rights under UK disclosure rules. The detailed trade data, disclosed in line with UK Market Abuse Regulation, underlines BAT’s continued use of capital-return measures to manage its balance sheet and signal confidence in its valuation to the market.
The most recent analyst rating on (GB:BATS) stock is a Sell with a £3600.00 price target. To see the full list of analyst forecasts on British American Tobacco stock, see the GB:BATS Stock Forecast page.
Spark’s Take on GB:BATS Stock
According to Spark, TipRanks’ AI Analyst, GB:BATS is a Outperform.
The score is driven primarily by solid-but-not-clean financial performance (profitability strength offset by leverage and a notable 2025 cash-flow decline). Valuation is supportive due to the high dividend yield and moderate P/E, while technicals are broadly neutral. Earnings-call guidance and capital-return plans help, but are tempered by vapor/illicit pressures and regional weakness.
To see Spark’s full report on GB:BATS stock, click here.
More about British American Tobacco
British American Tobacco p.l.c. is a global tobacco group listed in London, producing cigarettes and other nicotine products for international markets. The company operates across developed and emerging economies, where it competes with other multinational tobacco manufacturers for market share and investor capital.
Average Trading Volume: 4,374,407
Technical Sentiment Signal: Buy
Current Market Cap: £98.16B
For a thorough assessment of BATS stock, go to TipRanks’ Stock Analysis page.