Sigma Planning Corp Raises Stake in Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO)

Sigma Planning Corp grew its holdings in shares of Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO) by 12.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 6,685 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 720 shares during the quarter. Sigma Planning Corp’s holdings in Diageo were worth $850,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in DEO. Canoe Financial LP raised its position in Diageo by 88,407.3% in the 4th 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 period. FMR LLC increased its holdings in shares of Diageo by 9.1% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,242,065 shares of the company’s stock worth $735,671,000 after buying an additional 437,646 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake in shares of Diageo by 13.4% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,254,393 shares of the company’s stock valued at $176,042,000 after acquiring an additional 147,920 shares during the last quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Diageo by 30.5% in the 3rd quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC now owns 1,215,786 shares of the company’s stock valued at $170,623,000 after acquiring an additional 284,046 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in Diageo by 25.9% during the 3rd 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 period. 8.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on DEO shares. UBS Group raised Diageo from a “sell” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Diageo from $124.00 to $129.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Diageo from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Diageo currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $129.00.

Diageo Price Performance

NYSE:DEO opened at $110.07 on Wednesday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $118.39 and a 200-day simple moving average of $125.33. Diageo plc has a 1 year low of $105.72 and a 1 year high of $154.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $61.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.07, a PEG ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62, a current ratio of 1.60 and a quick ratio of 0.67.

Diageo Announces Dividend

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

Diageo Company 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.