Blue Zone Wealth Advisors LLC Boosts Stock Position in Diageo plc $DEO

Blue Zone Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO) by 5.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 40,101 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,974 shares during the quarter. Blue Zone Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Diageo were worth $4,044,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of DEO. Barrett & Company Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Diageo in the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. Abound Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Diageo in the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Diageo in the 1st quarter valued at $30,000. TruNorth Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Diageo in the 1st quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Diageo in the 1st quarter valued at $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 8.97% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on DEO shares. Bank of America cut their price objective on Diageo from $117.00 to $109.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 26th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Diageo in a report on Wednesday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Diageo from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Diageo currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $119.00.

Diageo Price Performance

Shares of NYSE DEO opened at $95.77 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $104.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $106.05. The company has a market cap of $53.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.58. Diageo plc has a 1-year low of $93.42 and a 1-year high of $139.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.63 and a quick ratio of 0.64.

Diageo Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 17th will be given a dividend of $2.5192 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 17th. This represents a dividend yield of 370.0%. This is an increase from Diageo’s previous semi-annual dividend of $1.62. Diageo’s payout ratio is currently 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.