NEW YORK, Feb. 20, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Bernstein Liebhard LLP:

• Do you, or did you, own shares of British American Tobacco p.l.c. (NYSE: BTI)?
• Did you purchase your shares between February 9, 2023 and December 6, 2023, inclusive?

• Did you lose money in your investment in British American Tobacco p.l.c.?
• Do you want to discuss your rights?

Bernstein Liebhard LLP, a nationally acclaimed investor rights law firm, reminds investors of the deadline to file a lead plaintiff motion in a securities class action lawsuit that has been filed on behalf of investors who purchased or acquired the securities of British American Tobacco p.l.c. (“BAT or the “Company”) (NYSE: BTI) between February 9, 2023 and December 6, 2023, inclusive (the “Class Period”). The lawsuit was filed in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York and alleges violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 against the Company and certain of its officers (the “Complaint”).

If you purchased or acquired BAT securities, and/or would like to discuss your legal rights and options please visit British American Tobacco p.l.c. Shareholder Class Action Lawsuit or contact Investor Relations Manager Peter Allocco at (212) 951-2030 or pallocco@bernlieb.com.

If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later than March 25, 2024. A lead plaintiff is a representative party acting on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation. Your ability to share in any recovery doesn’t require that you serve as lead plaintiff. If you choose to take no action, you may remain an absent class member.

According to the Complaint, BAT is a multi-national tobacco company that sells cigarettes (which the Company refers to in its filings as “combustibles” or “sticks”, for individual cigarettes) and other tobacco-related products, such as vaping products, chewing tobacco, snus, and heated tobacco products. BAT refers to itself in its filings as the “Group”.

In January 2017, BAT, which already had a 42% stake in Reynolds American Inc. (“Reynolds”), took over the remaining interest in Reynolds for $49.4 billion dollars, valuing Reynolds at around $86 billion. This resulted in Reynolds becoming a BAT subsidiary. In doing so, BAT took control of the Camel, Newport, and Natural American Spirit cigarette brands (the “Premium American Cigarette Brands” or the “Brands”), among others, which are considered to be premium cigarettes.

Throughout the Class Period, Defendants failed to disclose that BAT materially understated the risks and potential likelihood of an impairment to the Brands as a result of various longstanding headwinds.

On December 6, 2023, BAT issued a press release announcing that it was taking a 25 billion Pound (or around $31.5 billion USD) impairment on the cigarette brands it acquired from Reynolds.

On this news, British American’s American Depositary Receipt (“ADR”) price fell $2.68 per share, or 8.88%, to close at $28.86 per ADR on December 6, 2023.

If you purchased or acquired BAT securities, and/or would like to discuss your legal rights and options please visit British American Tobacco p.l.c. Shareholder Class Action Lawsuit or contact Investor Relations Manager Peter Allocco at (212) 951-2030 or pallocco@bernlieb.com.

Since 1993, Bernstein Liebhard LLP has recovered over $3.5 billion for its clients. In addition to representing individual investors, the Firm has been retained by some of the largest public and private pension funds in the country to monitor their assets and pursue litigation on their behalf. As a result of its success litigating hundreds of lawsuits and class actions, the Firm has been named to The National Law Journal’s “Plaintiffs’ Hot List” thirteen times and listed in The Legal 500 for sixteen consecutive years.

ATTORNEY ADVERTISING. © 2024 Bernstein Liebhard LLP. The law firm responsible for this advertisement is Bernstein Liebhard LLP, 10 East 40th Street, New York, New York 10016, (212) 779-1414. Prior results do not guarantee or predict a similar outcome with respect to any future matter.

Contact Information:

Peter Allocco
Investor Relations Manager
Bernstein Liebhard LLP
https://www.bernlieb.com
(212) 951-2030
pallocco@bernlieb.com