Guardian Partners Inc. Takes $5.95 Million Position in Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO)

Guardian Partners Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 47,397 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,945,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of DEO. Canoe Financial LP boosted its holdings in Diageo by 88,407.3% in the 4th quarter. Canoe Financial LP now owns 8,113,468 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,031,465,000 after purchasing an additional 8,104,301 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Diageo in the fourth quarter worth $123,892,000. FMR LLC boosted its stake in Diageo by 9.1% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,242,065 shares of the company's stock valued at $735,671,000 after buying an additional 437,646 shares during the period. ABC Arbitrage SA purchased a new position in Diageo during the fourth quarter worth about $37,777,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in Diageo by 25.9% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,116,994 shares of the company's stock worth $156,759,000 after acquiring an additional 229,946 shares during the last quarter. 8.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Diageo Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of Diageo stock traded down $0.51 during trading on Thursday, reaching $105.45. The company's stock had a trading volume of 189,232 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,080,651. The company has a market cap of $58.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.39, a PEG ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.65. The firm's 50-day moving average is $112.06 and its two-hundred day moving average is $122.22. Diageo plc has a 52-week low of $104.80 and a 52-week high of $149.36. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62.

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Diageo Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a dividend of $1.62 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This represents a yield of 3.8%. Diageo's payout ratio is 46.42%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on DEO shares. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Diageo from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. TD Cowen boosted their price target 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 upgraded shares of Diageo from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, UBS Group raised Diageo from a "sell" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Diageo has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target 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.