Bank of Montreal Can Acquires 1,296,285 Shares of Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO)

Bank of Montreal Can lifted its stake in Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO - Free Report) by 1,181.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,406,004 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,296,285 shares during the quarter. Bank of Montreal Can owned about 0.25% of Diageo worth $178,745,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Canoe Financial LP boosted its holdings in Diageo by 88,407.3% in the fourth quarter. Canoe Financial LP now owns 8,113,468 shares of the company's stock worth $1,031,465,000 after acquiring an additional 8,104,301 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Diageo in the 4th quarter worth about $123,892,000. FMR LLC boosted its stake in Diageo by 10.9% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,813,938 shares of the company's stock worth $739,126,000 after purchasing an additional 571,873 shares in the last quarter. ABC Arbitrage SA purchased a new stake in Diageo during the 4th quarter valued at about $37,777,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in Diageo by 25.9% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,116,994 shares of the company's stock valued at $156,759,000 after purchasing an additional 229,946 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 8.97% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on DEO. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Diageo from $124.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Diageo from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Berenberg Bank started coverage on Diageo in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. They set a "buy" rating on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $129.00.

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Diageo Stock Performance

DEO stock traded up $2.48 on Friday, hitting $109.52. The company had a trading volume of 998,186 shares, compared to its average volume of 929,611. The company has a current ratio of 1.60, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62. Diageo plc has a 12-month low of $100.72 and a 12-month high of $144.27. The stock has a market cap of $60.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.99, a P/E/G ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.63. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $107.97 and its 200 day simple moving average is $119.50.

Diageo Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 24th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a $1.62 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is 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.