Diageo (NYSE:DEO) Shares Gap Up – Should You Buy?

Shares of Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO) gapped up prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $106.48, but opened at $109.04. Diageo shares last traded at $106.81, with a volume of 443,477 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Diageo Trading Up 0.6 %

The company has a market cap of $59.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62, a current ratio of 1.60 and a quick ratio of 0.67. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $110.75 and a 200 day simple moving average of $121.35.

Diageo Dividend Announcement

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Diageo

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of DEO. Canoe Financial LP boosted its stake in Diageo by 88,407.3% in the fourth quarter. Canoe Financial LP now owns 8,113,468 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,031,465,000 after acquiring an additional 8,104,301 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its stake in shares of Diageo by 10.9% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,813,938 shares of the company’s stock worth $739,126,000 after purchasing an additional 571,873 shares during the period. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Diageo by 234.4% during the fourth quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 2,600,702 shares of the company’s stock worth $330,627,000 after purchasing an additional 1,822,994 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its stake in Diageo by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,540,800 shares of the company’s stock valued at $195,883,000 after buying an additional 3,876 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can boosted its holdings in Diageo by 1,181.5% during the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,406,004 shares of the company’s stock worth $178,745,000 after buying an additional 1,296,285 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 8.97% of the company’s stock.

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.