Mill Capital Management LLC Lowers Position in Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO)

Mill Capital Management LLC cut its stake in Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO) by 0.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 110,607 shares of the company’s stock after selling 303 shares during the quarter. Diageo accounts for about 1.1% of Mill Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest position. Mill Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Diageo were worth $14,061,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Canoe Financial LP raised its stake in shares of Diageo by 88,407.3% in the fourth quarter. Canoe Financial LP now owns 8,113,468 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,031,465,000 after purchasing an additional 8,104,301 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of Diageo by 9.1% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,242,065 shares of the company’s stock valued at $735,671,000 after acquiring an additional 437,646 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in shares of Diageo by 25.9% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,116,994 shares of the company’s stock valued at $156,759,000 after acquiring an additional 229,946 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in shares of Diageo by 6.9% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 991,459 shares of the company’s stock valued at $139,141,000 after acquiring an additional 64,367 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Diageo during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $123,892,000. 8.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on DEO shares. TD Cowen increased their price target on Diageo from $124.00 to $129.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Diageo from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. UBS Group raised Diageo from a “sell” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Diageo from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $129.00.

Diageo Price Performance

Shares of NYSE DEO opened at $107.09 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $112.65 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $122.64. Diageo plc has a 1-year low of $105.23 and a 1-year high of $149.44. The firm has a market cap of $59.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a current ratio of 1.60, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62.

Diageo Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a dividend of $1.62 per share. This represents a yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. Diageo’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.42%.

Diageo Profile

Diageo plc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the production, marketing, and sale of alcoholic beverages. The company offers scotch, gin, vodka, rum, raki, liqueur, wine, tequila, Chinese white spirits, cachaça, and brandy, as well as beer, including cider and flavored malt beverages. It also provides Chinese, Canadian, Irish, American, and Indian-Made Foreign Liquor whiskies, as well as flavored malt beverages, ready to drink, and non-alcoholic products.