Blue Trust Inc. Purchases 1,810 Shares of Diageo plc $DEO

Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in shares of Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO) by 36.5% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 6,771 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,810 shares during the quarter. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in Diageo were worth $683,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Diageo by 3.1% in the first quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,441,300 shares of the company’s stock worth $151,034,000 after acquiring an additional 42,740 shares during the period. Confluence Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Diageo by 14.0% in the second quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC now owns 1,350,826 shares of the company’s stock worth $136,217,000 after acquiring an additional 165,839 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. grew its stake in shares of Diageo by 9.8% in the first quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 1,069,567 shares of the company’s stock worth $112,080,000 after acquiring an additional 95,037 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC grew its stake in shares of Diageo by 2.2% in the first quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 434,735 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,556,000 after acquiring an additional 9,306 shares during the period. Finally, Douglas Lane & Associates LLC grew its stake in shares of Diageo by 11.7% in the second quarter. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC now owns 419,290 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,281,000 after acquiring an additional 44,011 shares during the period. 8.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Diageo Stock Performance

DEO opened at $95.77 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.63, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The company has a market cap of $53.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.98, a PEG ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 0.58. The company’s 50 day moving average is $104.27 and its 200 day moving average is $106.05. Diageo plc has a 12-month low of $93.42 and a 12-month high of $139.96.

Diageo Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 17th will be issued a dividend of $2.5192 per share. This is an increase from Diageo’s previous semi-annual dividend of $1.62. This represents a yield of 370.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 17th. Diageo’s payout ratio is presently 46.42%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently commented on DEO shares. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Diageo from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Diageo in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Bank of America dropped their price objective on shares of Diageo from $117.00 to $109.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 26th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $119.00.

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.