BAT holds guidance as new product popularity rises
British American Tobacco
2,893.00p
17:15 27/12/24
British American Tobacco maintained annual profit and sales guidance as more people switched to its vaping and oral nicotine products.
FTSE 100
8,149.78
16:54 27/12/24
FTSE 350
4,495.62
16:29 27/12/24
FTSE All-Share
4,453.14
17:05 27/12/24
Tobacco
34,107.17
16:29 27/12/24
The maker of Dunhill and Lucky Strike cigarettes on Tuesday said customers using its non-combustible products, rose by 3.6 million, to 17.1 million.
BAT kept its full-year forecast for constant currency revenue growth above 5% and mid-single digit adjusted earnings per share growth in 2021.
The higher adoption and increased distribution will result in new categories contributing to profit growth for the first time this year, BAT said, adding that its Vuse e-cigarette products were now the "global leader" in market share in the top five vaping markets in the world.
Market share rose 6.9 percentage points over 2020, so far this year to September.
The FTSE-listed company also said at current valuation it recognizes the "clear value" of a buyback, even as it seeks to reduce debt to three times its adjusted core earnings.