Colonial Trust Advisors Trims Stock Holdings in Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO)

Colonial Trust Advisors trimmed its holdings in Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO) by 28.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 16,870 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,609 shares during the period. Colonial Trust Advisors’ holdings in Diageo were worth $2,145,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of DEO. Canoe Financial LP boosted its holdings in Diageo by 88,407.3% in the 4th quarter. Canoe Financial LP now owns 8,113,468 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,031,465,000 after purchasing an additional 8,104,301 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Diageo by 11.7% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 37,718 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,795,000 after purchasing an additional 3,964 shares during the period. Maia Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Diageo by 24.7% in the fourth quarter. Maia Wealth LLC now owns 13,112 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,648,000 after purchasing an additional 2,593 shares during the period. Aviso Financial Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Diageo by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Aviso Financial Inc. now owns 242,637 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,846,000 after purchasing an additional 7,954 shares during the period. Finally, Tevis Investment Management increased its holdings in shares of Diageo by 159.7% in the fourth quarter. Tevis Investment Management now owns 13,869 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,763,000 after purchasing an additional 8,528 shares during the period. 8.97% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DEO has been the topic of several research analyst reports. UBS Group raised shares of Diageo from a “sell” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Diageo from $124.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Berenberg Bank started coverage on shares of Diageo in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Diageo from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $129.00.

Diageo Stock Performance

NYSE DEO opened at $107.36 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $108.30 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $120.01. 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 plc has a 12-month low of $100.72 and a 12-month high of $144.27. The firm has a market cap of $59.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.67, a PEG ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.63.

Diageo Announces Dividend

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

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.