Highland Capital Management LLC Sells 1,010 Shares of Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO)

Highland Capital Management LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO) by 6.6% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 14,279 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,010 shares during the quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Diageo were worth $1,800,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado grew its position in Diageo by 4,665.2% during the fourth quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 482,713 shares of the company’s stock worth $70,312,000 after buying an additional 472,583 shares in the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Diageo by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 14,621 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,129,000 after buying an additional 470 shares during the period. Beacon Financial Group bought a new stake in shares of Diageo in the 4th quarter worth about $296,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in Diageo by 56.7% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 677,478 shares of the company’s stock valued at $98,681,000 after purchasing an additional 245,255 shares during the last quarter. Finally, QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Diageo by 16.4% in the first quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 7,185 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,069,000 after acquiring an additional 1,011 shares during the last quarter. 8.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DEO has been the topic of several research reports. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded shares of Diageo from an “underperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Citigroup raised Diageo from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 3rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of Diageo from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, July 12th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Diageo currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $2,950.00.

Diageo Stock Up 0.6 %

NYSE DEO traded up $0.76 on Monday, reaching $135.79. The company had a trading volume of 19,517 shares, compared to its average volume of 768,265. The company’s fifty day moving average is $128.30 and its 200-day moving average is $137.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $75.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 1.58. Diageo plc has a 1-year low of $119.48 and a 1-year high of $171.07.

Diageo Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 30th will be given a dividend of $1.62 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 30th. This represents a dividend yield of 3.2%. Diageo’s dividend payout ratio is currently 71.37%.

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.