Diageo share price moved above its 200-day moving average on Monday, touching GBX 1,604.50 before last trading at GBX 1,591. The move put Diageo plc above a level many traders track closely, with shares changing hands on 3,239,510 shares.
John Rishton and Diageo plc
John Rishton bought 3,274 shares on Monday, May 18th at an average cost of GBX 1,527 per share, a £49,993.98 purchase. That follows John Alexander Manzoni’s earlier purchase of 441 shares on Wednesday, June 10th at an average price of GBX 1,488 per share for £6,562.08. In total, insiders bought 4,606 shares valued at $7,012,849 in the last three months, and insiders owned 0.16% of the stock.
Diageo’s technical position was not isolated from the rest of the tape. The 50-day moving average stood at GBX 1,538.52, below the 200-day line of GBX 1,557.95, so Monday’s move placed the shares back above a widely watched reference point after trading through it during the session. The stock also carried a market cap of £35.38 billion, a PE ratio of 14.70, a PEG ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 0.31.
UBS Group and rating split
Analysts were mixed on Diageo even as the shares moved higher. Five research analysts rated the stock Buy and three assigned Hold, leaving the consensus at Moderate Buy. UBS Group reaffirmed a neutral rating and set a GBX 1,600 target price on Tuesday, May 5th, while Jefferies Financial Group reissued a buy rating and set a £222.30 price target on Friday, June 26th.
Royal Bank Of Canada restated an outperform rating and set a GBX 2,000 price target on Wednesday, May 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft also restated a buy rating and issued a GBX 1,759 price objective on Wednesday, June 24th. The average target price across the coverage listed was GBX 4,554.88, which leaves a wide spread between current trading and the top-end views.
For readers following Diageo share price action, the immediate focus is whether Monday’s break above GBX 1,557.95 holds after a session that also produced insider buying and a split analyst picture. The market has one clear fact to weigh now: the stock closed the session above a key technical line, but the next move will decide whether that shift sticks or fades.
