One of the largest shareholders of the British American Tobacco (BAT) tobacco company, the American investment fund GQG Partners, urges the company to list its shares on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) instead of London, where they are currently listed. About it in an interview Financial Times said the founder of GQG Partners Rajiv Jain. BAT declined to comment on “shareholder engagement.”
According to Jain, there is “no point” in staying on the London Stock Exchange, where BAT shares have been traded since 1912. He noted that the company’s business is more focused on the United States, in addition, he pointed to the gap in value between BAT and its American competitor Philip Morris International in favor of the latter. BAT has a market capitalization of $80 billion and a PMI of $178 billion, although BAT outperforms it in terms of revenue and operating income. The US accounts for about 40% of BAT’s total annual revenue, and its US subsidiary Reynolds owns the popular Newport and Camel brands.
The US stock exchanges, with their larger investors and higher average company valuations, often encourage investors to choose the NYSE over London in recent times. So, the British chipmaker Arm, which had previously planned to hold an IPO in London, decided to eventually place on the NYSE. The world’s largest manufacturer of building materials CRH is going to transfer trading of its shares from the London Stock Exchange to the New York Stock Exchange. Earlier it was reported that the oil company Shell was considering moving its headquarters to New York.
