Marble Harbor Investment Counsel LLC Grows Stock Position in Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO)

Marble Harbor Investment Counsel LLC raised its stake in shares of Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO) by 12.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 22,699 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 2,536 shares during the period. Marble Harbor Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Diageo were worth $2,886,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of DEO. Canoe Financial LP raised its stake in shares of Diageo by 88,407.3% during the 4th quarter. Canoe Financial LP now owns 8,113,468 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,031,465,000 after buying an additional 8,104,301 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Diageo during the 4th quarter valued at about $123,892,000. Natixis Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Diageo by 105.7% during the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 949,411 shares of the company’s stock valued at $133,240,000 after buying an additional 487,904 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its stake in shares of Diageo by 9.1% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,242,065 shares of the company’s stock valued at $735,671,000 after buying an additional 437,646 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ABC Arbitrage SA purchased a new position in shares of Diageo during the 4th quarter valued at about $37,777,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 8.97% of the company’s stock.

Diageo Trading Down 1.2 %

DEO stock opened at $112.81 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.60, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62. Diageo plc has a 12-month low of $105.72 and a 12-month high of $151.76. The stock has a market cap of $62.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.47, a PEG ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.65. The business’s 50-day moving average is $115.90 and its 200 day moving average is $124.40.

Diageo Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Diageo Company Profile

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.