Hsbc Holdings PLC Purchases 39,468 Shares of Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO)

Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its position in Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO) by 63.1% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 101,978 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 39,468 shares during the quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC’s holdings in Diageo were worth $12,944,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Beacon Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Diageo during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $2,867,000. Stifel Financial Corp raised its holdings in Diageo by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 315,176 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,069,000 after acquiring an additional 7,285 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its position in shares of Diageo by 1,021.2% during the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 25,092 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,190,000 after acquiring an additional 22,854 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Diageo by 10.6% in the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 386,148 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,091,000 after acquiring an additional 37,129 shares during the period. Finally, Generation Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Diageo in the fourth quarter valued at $592,000. 8.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on DEO. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Diageo from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Berenberg Bank started coverage on shares of Diageo in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Diageo from $124.00 to $129.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $129.00.

Diageo Price Performance

Diageo stock opened at $110.73 on Monday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $108.22 and a 200 day simple moving average of $117.59. Diageo plc has a 52 week low of $100.72 and a 52 week high of $144.27. The stock has a market cap of $61.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.16, a PEG ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.63. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62.

Diageo Dividend Announcement

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