Short Interest in Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO) Declines By 15.9%

Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest in March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 638,200 shares, a decline of 15.9% from the February 28th total of 759,300 shares. Currently, 0.1% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 1,080,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 0.6 days.

Diageo Trading Down 0.2 %

DEO stock traded down $0.25 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $104.54. The company had a trading volume of 751,143 shares, compared to its average volume of 884,295. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62. Diageo has a 12 month low of $103.70 and a 12 month high of $149.24. The stock has a market cap of $58.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.26, a PEG ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.65. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $111.27 and a 200-day moving average price of $121.65.

Diageo Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a dividend of $1.62 per share. This represents a yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. Diageo’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.42%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on DEO. UBS Group raised Diageo from a “sell” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Diageo from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of Diageo from $124.00 to $129.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Diageo from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $129.00.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans bought a new position in shares of Diageo in the third quarter worth $261,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Diageo by 84.8% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 33,754 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,737,000 after acquiring an additional 15,487 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its holdings in shares of Diageo by 32.8% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 65,894 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,248,000 after acquiring an additional 16,285 shares in the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors lifted its position in Diageo by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 37,644 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,283,000 after acquiring an additional 1,409 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Verition Fund Management LLC purchased a new position in Diageo during the 3rd quarter worth $6,323,000. 8.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Diageo

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