Clearbridge Investments LLC Sells 195,682 Shares of Diageo plc $DEO

Clearbridge Investments LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO) by 26.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 556,998 shares of the company’s stock after selling 195,682 shares during the period. Clearbridge Investments LLC owned 0.10% of Diageo worth $48,052,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Havemeyer Place LP bought a new stake in shares of Diageo during the fourth quarter worth $844,000. MCF Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Diageo by 2,776.0% during the fourth quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 719 shares of the company’s stock worth $62,000 after purchasing an additional 694 shares during the last quarter. TT Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Diageo by 42.3% during the fourth quarter. TT Capital Management LLC now owns 4,998 shares of the company’s stock worth $431,000 after purchasing an additional 1,485 shares during the last quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Diageo by 18.7% during the fourth quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. now owns 8,854 shares of the company’s stock worth $764,000 after purchasing an additional 1,397 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sittner & Nelson LLC grew its holdings in shares of Diageo by 574.1% during the fourth quarter. Sittner & Nelson LLC now owns 1,874 shares of the company’s stock worth $162,000 after purchasing an additional 1,596 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 8.97% of the company’s stock.

Diageo Trading Down 0.1%

NYSE:DEO opened at $80.32 on Tuesday. Diageo plc has a 1-year low of $72.45 and a 1-year high of $116.41. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $80.24 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $85.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 1.60 and a quick ratio of 0.71.

Diageo Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 17th were paid a $0.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 17th. This represents a yield of 195.0%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on DEO shares. HSBC cut Diageo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Zacks Research upgraded Diageo from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 23rd. Argus upgraded Diageo to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Diageo from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Diageo in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $116.50.

Diageo 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.