Brandes Investment Partners LP Buys 295,004 Shares of Diageo plc $DEO

Brandes Investment Partners LP increased its holdings in shares of Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO) by 4,475.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 301,596 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 295,004 shares during the period. Brandes Investment Partners LP’s holdings in Diageo were worth $26,020,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd lifted its position in Diageo by 236.6% during the second quarter. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd now owns 1,157,991 shares of the company’s stock worth $116,772,000 after acquiring an additional 813,973 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. lifted its position in Diageo by 48.5% during the third quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 1,701,878 shares of the company’s stock worth $162,410,000 after acquiring an additional 555,509 shares during the last quarter. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Diageo during the fourth quarter worth approximately $46,763,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its position in Diageo by 2,282.6% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 438,237 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,303,000 after acquiring an additional 419,844 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its position in Diageo by 118.8% during the fourth quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 685,110 shares of the company’s stock worth $59,104,000 after acquiring an additional 371,929 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 8.97% of the company’s stock.

Diageo Trading Down 0.7%

NYSE DEO opened at $79.84 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $80.49 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $85.33. Diageo plc has a fifty-two week low of $72.45 and a fifty-two week high of $116.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53.

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 dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 195.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 17th.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Argus upgraded shares of Diageo to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Diageo from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 23rd. HSBC downgraded shares of Diageo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. BNP Paribas Exane upgraded shares of Diageo from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 25th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Diageo in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Diageo has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $116.50.

About Diageo

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.