Equity Investment Corp Buys 163,168 Shares of Diageo plc $DEO

Equity Investment Corp grew its stake in Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO) by 16.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,137,390 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 163,168 shares during the quarter. Equity Investment Corp’s holdings in Diageo were worth $98,123,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Spire Wealth Management grew its stake in shares of Diageo by 123.6% in the fourth quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 322 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC grew its stake in shares of Diageo by 8,000.0% in the fourth quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 324 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 320 shares in the last quarter. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Diageo in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Texas Capital Bancshares Inc TX acquired a new position in shares of Diageo in the third quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, GGM Financials LLC acquired a new position in shares of Diageo in the third quarter valued at about $36,000. 8.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Diageo Stock Up 1.9%

Shares of Diageo stock opened at $81.27 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.60, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. Diageo plc has a 12-month low of $72.45 and a 12-month high of $116.41. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $80.63 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $85.26.

Diageo Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 17th were paid a $0.80 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 195.0%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 17th.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on DEO. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Diageo from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. BNP Paribas Exane upgraded shares of Diageo from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 25th. HSBC downgraded shares of Diageo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Diageo from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 23rd. Finally, Argus upgraded shares of Diageo to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. Five 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, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus 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.