Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the twelve brokerages that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One investment 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 objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $116.50.

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on DEO shares. HSBC downgraded shares of Diageo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Diageo from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 23rd. BNP Paribas Exane upgraded shares of Diageo from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Diageo from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Diageo in a report on Monday, April 20th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Diageo

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of DEO. Bank of Montreal Can grew its holdings in Diageo by 428.7% in the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 2,173,047 shares of the company’s stock valued at $187,469,000 after purchasing an additional 1,762,027 shares during the period. Equity Investment Corp purchased a new stake in Diageo in the third quarter valued at approximately $92,970,000. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd grew its holdings in Diageo by 236.6% in the second quarter. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd now owns 1,157,991 shares of the company’s stock valued at $116,772,000 after purchasing an additional 813,973 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. grew its holdings in Diageo by 48.5% in the third quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 1,701,878 shares of the company’s stock valued at $162,410,000 after purchasing an additional 555,509 shares during the period. Finally, Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Diageo in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $46,763,000. 8.97% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Diageo Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of NYSE DEO opened at $79.42 on Wednesday. Diageo has a 12 month low of $72.45 and a 12 month high of $116.41. The company has a current ratio of 1.60, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $79.64 and a 200-day simple moving average of $85.97.

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 issued 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.