Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO)

Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC lowered its stake in Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO) by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,247 shares of the company’s stock after selling 104 shares during the period. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Diageo were worth $596,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Bank of Montreal Can grew its holdings in shares of Diageo by 1,034.5% in the second quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 799,652 shares of the company’s stock worth $104,443,000 after purchasing an additional 729,166 shares during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its position in Diageo by 416.0% during the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 521,920 shares of the company’s stock valued at $65,939,000 after buying an additional 420,778 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates increased its position in shares of Diageo by 52.3% in the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 853,640 shares of the company’s stock valued at $119,800,000 after acquiring an additional 293,017 shares during the period. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH increased its position in shares of Diageo by 12,174.6% in the second quarter. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH now owns 246,229 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,045,000 after acquiring an additional 244,223 shares during the period. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of Diageo by 7.0% during the first quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 2,351,654 shares of the company’s stock valued at $349,785,000 after acquiring an additional 154,497 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 8.97% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group cut Diageo from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, July 12th. Royal Bank of Canada raised Diageo from an “underperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Bank of America raised Diageo from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. Finally, Citigroup raised shares of Diageo from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 3rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold”.

Diageo Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE:DEO opened at $133.27 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $74.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.98, a P/E/G ratio of 3.84 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 1.53. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $134.02 and a 200-day moving average price of $133.48. Diageo plc has a 52-week low of $119.48 and a 52-week high of $161.64.

Diageo Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 30th were issued a $1.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 30th. This represents a yield of 3.2%. Diageo’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 71.51%.

Diageo 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.