Crawford Investment Counsel Inc. Acquires 11,080 Shares of Diageo plc $DEO

Crawford Investment Counsel Inc. raised its holdings in Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO) by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 240,076 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 11,080 shares during the quarter. Crawford Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Diageo were worth $22,910,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DEO. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Diageo in the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC raised its holdings in Diageo by 3,885.7% during the third quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 279 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 272 shares in the last quarter. Bell Investment Advisors Inc raised its holdings in Diageo by 94.7% during the second quarter. Bell Investment Advisors Inc now owns 292 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. New England Capital Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Diageo during the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, HHM Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Diageo by 76.5% during the second quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 330 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. 8.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $124.00 price target on Diageo and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 29th. HSBC downgraded Diageo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “hold” rating on shares of Diageo in a report on Friday, November 28th. Barclays reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Diageo in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Diageo in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Diageo currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $116.50.

Diageo Price Performance

DEO opened at $77.37 on Friday. Diageo plc has a 12-month low of $75.77 and a 12-month high of $116.69. The business has a 50 day moving average of $90.56 and a 200-day moving average of $93.31. 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 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.