StockNews.com Downgrades Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) to Sell

StockNews.com cut shares of Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report released on Wednesday morning.

STZ has been the topic of several other research reports. Roth Capital lowered their price objective on Constellation Brands from $298.00 to $284.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and issued a $201.00 price target (down previously from $310.00) on shares of Constellation Brands in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $293.00 price target on shares of Constellation Brands in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Constellation Brands from $280.00 to $220.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Evercore ISI decreased their price target on Constellation Brands from $300.00 to $250.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Constellation Brands presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $254.29.

Constellation Brands Stock Down 1.1 %

STZ stock opened at $169.05 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 0.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.44, a PEG ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.90. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $210.28 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $231.88. Constellation Brands has a fifty-two week low of $166.02 and a fifty-two week high of $274.87.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 10th. The company reported $3.25 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.33 by ($0.08). The firm had revenue of $2.46 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.53 billion. Constellation Brands had a return on equity of 26.55% and a net margin of 6.27%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.19 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Constellation Brands will post 13.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Constellation Brands Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th will be paid a $1.01 dividend. This represents a $4.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.39%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. Constellation Brands’s dividend payout ratio is currently 108.60%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director William T. Giles acquired 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 17th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $186.39 per share, with a total value of $186,390.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 1,463 shares in the company, valued at $272,688.57. The trade was a 215.98 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, major shareholder Wildstar Partners Llc sold 660 shares of Constellation Brands stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.00, for a total value of $159,060.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 1,736,884 shares in the company, valued at approximately $418,589,044. This represents a 0.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 61,746 shares of company stock valued at $15,017,097 over the last ninety days. 12.19% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Constellation Brands

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Constellation Brands by 13.2% in the fourth quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 5,615 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,241,000 after purchasing an additional 654 shares in the last quarter. PFG Advisors increased its holdings in Constellation Brands by 12.4% in the fourth quarter. PFG Advisors now owns 1,882 shares of the company’s stock worth $416,000 after purchasing an additional 208 shares in the last quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC increased its holdings in Constellation Brands by 547.1% in the fourth quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 20,080 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,438,000 after purchasing an additional 16,977 shares in the last quarter. Briaud Financial Planning Inc bought a new stake in Constellation Brands in the fourth quarter worth approximately $110,000. Finally, King Luther Capital Management Corp increased its holdings in Constellation Brands by 7.1% in the fourth quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp now owns 1,511 shares of the company’s stock worth $334,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. 77.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Constellation Brands

Constellation Brands, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, produces, imports, markets, and sells beer, wine, and spirits in the United States, Canada, Mexico, New Zealand, and Italy. The company provides beer primarily under the Corona Extra, Corona Familiar, Corona Hard Seltzer, Corona Light, Corona Non-Alcoholic, Corona Premier, Corona Refresca, Modelo Especial, Modelo Chelada, Modelo Negra, Modelo Oro, Victoria, Vicky Chamoy, and Pacifico brands.