Asset Management One Co. Ltd. Trims Stock Position in Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO)

Asset Management One Co. Ltd. lowered its holdings in shares of Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO) by 2.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,773 shares of the company’s stock after selling 125 shares during the quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Diageo were worth $694,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in DEO. Sei Investments Co. increased its holdings in Diageo by 6.8% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 47,667 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,647,000 after acquiring an additional 3,034 shares in the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Diageo by 27.8% in the 1st quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 3,749 shares of the company’s stock worth $762,000 after acquiring an additional 816 shares in the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in Diageo by 19.2% in the 1st quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 1,228 shares of the company’s stock worth $249,000 after acquiring an additional 198 shares in the last quarter. Ergoteles LLC increased its holdings in Diageo by 34.3% in the 1st quarter. Ergoteles LLC now owns 1,366 shares of the company’s stock worth $277,000 after acquiring an additional 349 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Prudential Financial Inc. increased its holdings in Diageo by 33.5% in the 1st quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 6,788 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,379,000 after acquiring an additional 1,704 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 8.97% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on DEO. Argus downgraded Diageo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 4th. BNP Paribas downgraded Diageo from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 12th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Diageo has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $3,778.00.

Diageo Stock Performance

NYSE:DEO opened at $136.99 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $147.83 and its 200 day moving average is $146.80. Diageo plc has a fifty-two week low of $135.63 and a fifty-two week high of $190.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 1.58.

Diageo Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 17th. Investors of record on Friday, March 1st will be issued a dividend of $1.62 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 29th. This represents a yield of 2.7%.

Diageo Company Profile

Diageo plc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the production, marketing, and sale of alcoholic beverages. It offers scotch, gin, vodka, rum, raki, liqueur, wine, tequila, Chinese white spirits, cachaça, and brandy, as well as beer, including cider and flavoured malt beverages. The company also provides Canadian, Irish, American, and Indian-Made Foreign Liquor whiskies, as well as ready to drink and non-alcoholic products.