Portside Wealth Group LLC Lowers Stake in Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO)

Portside Wealth Group LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO) by 3.1% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 4,637 shares of the company’s stock after selling 148 shares during the period. Portside Wealth Group LLC’s holdings in Diageo were worth $486,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. FMR LLC lifted its position in Diageo by 10.9% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,813,938 shares of the company’s stock valued at $739,126,000 after acquiring an additional 571,873 shares during the period. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC lifted its position in Diageo by 234.4% during the 4th quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 2,600,702 shares of the company’s stock valued at $330,627,000 after acquiring an additional 1,822,994 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its position in Diageo by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,540,800 shares of the company’s stock valued at $195,883,000 after acquiring an additional 3,876 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its position in Diageo by 1,181.5% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,406,004 shares of the company’s stock valued at $178,745,000 after acquiring an additional 1,296,285 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in Diageo by 9.3% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,220,534 shares of the company’s stock valued at $155,167,000 after acquiring an additional 103,540 shares during the period. 8.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Diageo Stock Up 3.0%

Shares of Diageo stock opened at $110.82 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 1.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $61.65 billion, a PE ratio of 16.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.58. Diageo plc has a 52-week low of $100.72 and a 52-week high of $142.73. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $110.09 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $114.57.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DEO has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “underweight” rating on shares of Diageo in a report on Monday, May 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Diageo from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Berenberg Bank initiated coverage on shares of Diageo in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $129.00.

About Diageo

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.