Assetmark Inc. Purchases 111,968 Shares of Diageo plc $DEO

Assetmark Inc. raised its position in shares of Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO) by 95.0% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 229,780 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 111,968 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc.’s holdings in Diageo were worth $21,928,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of DEO. Cibc World Market Inc. raised its stake in Diageo by 53.6% during the third quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 163,220 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,576,000 after purchasing an additional 56,945 shares in the last quarter. Caprock Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Diageo in the 3rd quarter worth about $491,000. ABC Arbitrage SA raised its position in shares of Diageo by 35.5% during the 3rd quarter. ABC Arbitrage SA now owns 419,082 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,993,000 after buying an additional 109,805 shares in the last quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. lifted its holdings in shares of Diageo by 92.9% in the 3rd quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 6,803 shares of the company’s stock valued at $649,000 after acquiring an additional 3,276 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Prospera Financial Services Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Diageo by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 18,382 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,755,000 after acquiring an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. 8.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on DEO shares. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Diageo in a report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Royal Bank Of Canada upgraded Diageo from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Zacks Research cut shares of Diageo from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Diageo in a research note on Friday, November 28th. Finally, Barclays reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Diageo in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $116.50.

Diageo Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:DEO opened at $99.19 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.63 and a quick ratio of 0.64. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $90.14 and a 200 day moving average of $96.17. Diageo plc has a 52 week low of $84.52 and a 52 week high of $116.69.

Diageo Company Profile

Diageo plc is a global producer, marketer and distributor of alcoholic beverages, headquartered in London, England. The company was created through the 1997 merger of Guinness plc and Grand Metropolitan plc and is publicly traded on multiple exchanges, including the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: DEO) and the London Stock Exchange. Diageo operates a worldwide business, selling products in a broad range of markets across the Americas, Europe, Africa, Asia and Latin America.

Diageo’s core activities cover the production, marketing and sale of a diverse portfolio of spirits, beer and liqueurs.