17 February 2021 | 07:32am
StockMarketWire.com - Tobacco giant British American Tobacco reported a rise in annual profit as higher cigarette prices and strong momentum in its non-combustible products including vaping.
For the year ended 31 December, pre-tax profit rose to £8.67 billion from £7.91 billion year-on-year, while revenue fell 0.4% to £25.78 billion.
Last year, the company increased the number of consumers of its non-combustible products by 3 million to 13.5 million, doubling the rate of consumer adoption in the second half of 2020. We have excellent momentum in new categories, with accelerating volume and value share gains, the company said.
Combustible revenue was up 2.8% as a 4.5% decline in volume was offset by strong price/mix of 7.3%, while new categories revenue was up 15%.
17 February 2021 | 12:02pm
StockMarketWire.com - The FTSE 100 dipped 0.14% to 6,739.27 on Wednesday as a higher-than-expected reading of UK inflation stoked some fears over rising prices.
In the US futures markets suggested a similarly tepid feel to trading on Wall Street, with retail sales data scheduled to be released.
British American Tobacco dropped 4% to £26.38, even as it reported a rise in annual profit, citing strength at its vaping business.
The tobacco giant upped its dividend 2.5% to 215.6, while guiding for 3-5% constant-currency revenue growth in 2021 and mid-single-digit percentage earnings growth reflecting continued Covid-19 impacts .
Fellow tobacco company Imperial Brands slipped 1.1% to £14.97 on announcing that chief financial officer Oliver Tant would stand down by no later than August.
19 January 2021 | 08:23am
StockMarketWire.com - Tobacco giant British American Tobacco said Zafar Khan, currently head of new categories operations would succeed Alan Davy as new operations director.
Davy would step down from the board on 31st January 2021 and leave the group on 31st May 2021 to pursue new challenges and spend more time with his family, the company said.
Khan started with BAT in his home country of Pakistan 24 years ago, since then he had acquired extensive global operations and supply chain experience, including regional operations director of Asia Pacific and Middle East and Group head of plan, service & logistics.
15 January 2021 | 09:17am
StockMarketWire.com - The FTSE 100 opened lower this morning over fears the UK is on the brink of a double-dip recession after official figures confirmed a slump in November.
The Office for National Statistics said that GDP fell 2.6% in November as the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic took hold.
At 0845 GMT the benchmark index was down 41.12 points, or 0.60% to 6,760.84.
Engineering and industrial software company Aveva said revenue increased about 1.5% in the nine months to 31 December 2020, underpinned by a contract renewals in the final quarter of the year.
Its shares rose 4.73% to £37.25.
Tobacco giant British American Tobacco said the Serious Fraud Office had ended its probe into suspicions of corruption activity carried out by the company. The SFO would not be taking no further action, and the company said it was pleased the investigation, launched on 1 August 2017, had been discontinued.