Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC Purchases New Shares in Diageo plc $DEO

Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO) in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm acquired 540,879 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $46,763,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in DEO. Spire Wealth Management lifted its stake in shares of Diageo by 123.6% in the 4th quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 322 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares during the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its holdings in Diageo by 8,000.0% during the 4th quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 324 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 320 shares during the period. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Diageo in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Texas Capital Bancshares Inc TX bought a new stake in Diageo in the third quarter worth $32,000. Finally, GGM Financials LLC purchased a new position in Diageo during the third quarter worth $36,000. 8.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Diageo Price Performance

Diageo stock opened at $80.53 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 1.60 and a quick ratio of 0.71. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $80.11 and a two-hundred day moving average of $85.53. Diageo plc has a 1 year low of $72.45 and a 1 year high of $116.41.

Diageo Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 4th. Investors 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%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on DEO shares. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Diageo from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 23rd. BNP Paribas Exane raised shares of Diageo from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 25th. Argus upgraded shares of Diageo to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Diageo from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Diageo in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Diageo has a consensus 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.