Lido Advisors LLC Decreases Holdings in Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO)

Lido Advisors LLC cut its stake in Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO) by 40.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,154 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,484 shares during the quarter. Lido Advisors LLC’s holdings in Diageo were worth $274,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of DEO. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC UT raised its holdings in shares of Diageo by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC UT now owns 3,383 shares of the company’s stock valued at $430,000 after buying an additional 86 shares during the period. Savant Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Diageo by 5.0% during the fourth quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 1,864 shares of the company’s stock valued at $237,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the period. GeoWealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Diageo by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 6,944 shares of the company’s stock valued at $883,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co lifted its position in shares of Diageo by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 1,855 shares of the company’s stock worth $236,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cromwell Holdings LLC boosted its stake in shares of Diageo by 8.6% in the fourth quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 1,286 shares of the company’s stock valued at $163,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 8.97% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Diageo Stock Performance

Shares of Diageo stock opened at $114.70 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 1.60. Diageo plc has a 1 year low of $100.72 and a 1 year high of $144.27. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $108.67 and its 200-day simple moving average is $116.55. The firm has a market cap of $63.81 billion, a PE ratio of 16.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.60.

Diageo Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a dividend of $1.62 per share. This represents a yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. Diageo’s payout ratio is currently 46.42%.

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.