Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO) Short Interest Down 24.7% in December

Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO) saw a large drop in short interest during the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totaling 2,012,433 shares, a drop of 24.7% from the November 30th total of 2,672,976 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,819,937 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.1 days. Currently, 0.4% of the shares of the company are sold short. Currently, 0.4% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 1,819,937 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.1 days.

Diageo Price Performance

NYSE:DEO traded down $0.31 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $86.29. The stock had a trading volume of 1,050,559 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,640,091. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $90.59 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $98.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 1.63. Diageo has a one year low of $85.11 and a one year high of $127.33.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Diageo

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in DEO. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its position in Diageo by 72,871.7% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,568,162 shares of the company’s stock valued at $158,133,000 after buying an additional 1,566,013 shares during the period. Equity Investment Corp bought a new stake in shares of Diageo in the 3rd quarter valued at about $92,970,000. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd boosted its holdings in Diageo by 236.6% during the 2nd quarter. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd now owns 1,157,991 shares of the company’s stock valued at $116,772,000 after acquiring an additional 813,973 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its holdings in Diageo by 353.7% during the 2nd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 717,740 shares of the company’s stock valued at $72,377,000 after acquiring an additional 559,547 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. grew its position in Diageo by 48.5% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 1,701,878 shares of the company’s stock worth $162,410,000 after acquiring an additional 555,509 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 8.97% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on DEO. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $124.00 price objective on Diageo and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of Diageo from $117.00 to $109.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Diageo in a report on Friday, November 28th. Zacks Research cut Diageo from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 11th. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Diageo in a research note on Wednesday, December 3rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $120.67.

Diageo Company 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.