Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA Has $1.01 Million Stock Holdings in Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO)

Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA lifted its position in Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO) by 5.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 6,994 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 350 shares during the period. Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA’s holdings in Diageo were worth $1,009,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Fox Run Management L.L.C. acquired a new stake in shares of Diageo in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $263,000. Cerity Partners LLC raised its holdings in Diageo by 6.1% during the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 41,808 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,090,000 after buying an additional 2,400 shares during the period. Retirement Planning Co of New England Inc. raised its holdings in Diageo by 51.0% during the 3rd quarter. Retirement Planning Co of New England Inc. now owns 8,723 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,301,000 after buying an additional 2,946 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in Diageo by 8.2% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 432,223 shares of the company’s stock worth $64,479,000 after buying an additional 32,928 shares during the period. Finally, Rockline Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Diageo during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,142,000. 8.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Argus downgraded shares of Diageo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 4th. BNP Paribas downgraded shares of Diageo from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 12th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Diageo has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $3,797.50.

Diageo Stock Performance

Shares of DEO traded down $1.20 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $140.91. 420,295 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 808,868. Diageo plc has a 52 week low of $135.63 and a 52 week high of $190.02. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $146.80 and a 200 day simple moving average of $146.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.73, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 0.65.

Diageo Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a dividend of $1.62 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a dividend yield of 2.7%.

Diageo Profile

Diageo plc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the production, marketing, and sale of alcoholic beverages. It offers scotch, gin, vodka, rum, raki, liqueur, wine, tequila, Chinese white spirits, cachaça, and brandy, as well as beer, including cider and flavoured malt beverages. The company also provides Canadian, Irish, American, and Indian-Made Foreign Liquor whiskies, as well as ready to drink and non-alcoholic products.