HighTower Advisors LLC Has $3.74 Million Position in Diageo plc $DEO

HighTower Advisors LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO) by 47.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 43,327 shares of the company’s stock after selling 39,498 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in Diageo were worth $3,738,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of DEO. Brighton Jones LLC acquired a new stake in Diageo during the fourth quarter worth $202,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its stake in Diageo by 17.0% during the second quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 3,952 shares of the company’s stock worth $399,000 after buying an additional 574 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in Diageo by 5.3% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 212,004 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,379,000 after buying an additional 10,653 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Diageo by 87.3% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,234 shares of the company’s stock worth $124,000 after buying an additional 575 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jump Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Diageo during the second quarter worth $444,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 8.97% of the company’s stock.

Diageo Stock Performance

Shares of Diageo stock opened at $82.61 on Friday. Diageo plc 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 business’s 50 day moving average is $79.54 and its 200-day moving average is $86.16.

Diageo Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.80 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 17th. This represents a dividend yield of 195.0%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Diageo from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 23rd. HSBC cut Diageo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Diageo from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Diageo in a report on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Argus raised Diageo to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $116.50.

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.