Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO) Receives $116.50 Average Price Target from Brokerages

Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO) has received a consensus rating of “Hold” from the twelve research firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $116.50.

A number of analysts have recently commented on DEO shares. HSBC cut shares of Diageo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Diageo in a report on Monday, April 20th. 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. Finally, Argus upgraded shares of Diageo to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th.

Diageo Stock Performance

Shares of DEO stock opened at $80.42 on Wednesday. Diageo has a 12 month low of $72.45 and a 12 month high of $116.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 1.60. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $80.37 and its 200-day moving average price is $85.40.

Diageo Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 17th were issued a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 195.0%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 17th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Diageo

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Bank of America Corp DE raised its position in shares of Diageo by 3.7% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 2,913,707 shares of the company’s stock worth $216,925,000 after purchasing an additional 103,531 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can raised its position in shares of Diageo by 428.7% in the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 2,173,047 shares of the company’s stock worth $187,469,000 after purchasing an additional 1,762,027 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley raised its position in shares of Diageo by 32.4% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,947,245 shares of the company’s stock worth $167,989,000 after purchasing an additional 476,979 shares during the last quarter. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd raised its position in shares of Diageo by 12.4% in the 4th quarter. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd now owns 1,737,346 shares of the company’s stock worth $149,881,000 after purchasing an additional 191,216 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. raised its position in shares of Diageo by 48.5% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 1,701,878 shares of the company’s stock worth $162,410,000 after purchasing an additional 555,509 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 8.97% of the company’s stock.

About Diageo

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.