Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO) Receives Average Rating of “Hold” from Analysts

Shares of Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO) have been given an average recommendation of “Hold” by the twelve research firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, six have issued a hold recommendation and five have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $116.50.

Several research firms have commented on DEO. Argus upgraded shares of Diageo to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. HSBC cut Diageo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Zacks Research raised Diageo from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 23rd. BNP Paribas Exane upgraded Diageo from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 25th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Diageo from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st.

Institutional Trading of Diageo

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in DEO. Brighton Jones LLC bought a new position in shares of Diageo in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $202,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its holdings in Diageo by 17.0% during the second quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 3,952 shares of the company’s stock worth $399,000 after purchasing an additional 574 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in Diageo by 5.3% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 212,004 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,379,000 after purchasing an additional 10,653 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Diageo by 87.3% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,234 shares of the company’s stock worth $124,000 after purchasing an additional 575 shares during the period. Finally, Jump Financial LLC bought a new position in Diageo during the 2nd quarter valued at $444,000. 8.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Diageo Trading Down 0.5%

DEO stock opened at $80.70 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. Diageo has a fifty-two week low of $72.45 and a fifty-two week high of $116.41. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $78.42 and its 200 day simple moving average is $86.81.

Diageo Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 4th. Investors of record on Friday, April 17th will be given a $0.80 dividend. This represents a yield of 195.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 17th.

Diageo Company Profile

Diageo plc is a global producer, marketer and distributor of alcoholic beverages, headquartered in London, England. The company was created through the 1997 merger of Guinness plc and Grand Metropolitan plc and is publicly traded on multiple exchanges, including the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: DEO) and the London Stock Exchange. Diageo operates a worldwide business, selling products in a broad range of markets across the Americas, Europe, Africa, Asia and Latin America.

Diageo’s core activities cover the production, marketing and sale of a diverse portfolio of spirits, beer and liqueurs.