Gradient Investments LLC Increases Holdings in Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ)

Gradient Investments LLC boosted its position in Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ) by 14.8% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 55,988 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,219 shares during the period. Gradient Investments LLC’s holdings in Constellation Brands were worth $12,373,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Constellation Brands by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,144,428 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,841,048,000 after acquiring an additional 402,211 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its holdings in shares of Constellation Brands by 1.2% during the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,853,081 shares of the company’s stock worth $477,515,000 after purchasing an additional 21,454 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its position in Constellation Brands by 5.7% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 1,335,976 shares of the company’s stock valued at $343,717,000 after purchasing an additional 72,637 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Constellation Brands by 23,184.7% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 499,689 shares of the company’s stock valued at $128,765,000 after purchasing an additional 497,543 shares during the last quarter. Finally, National Pension Service grew its position in Constellation Brands by 13.6% during the 3rd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 381,755 shares of the company’s stock worth $98,374,000 after purchasing an additional 45,707 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.34% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

STZ has been the subject of several analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on Constellation Brands from $315.00 to $305.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Barclays decreased their price target on Constellation Brands from $282.00 to $214.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $308.00 price objective on shares of Constellation Brands in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Piper Sandler decreased their target price on shares of Constellation Brands from $300.00 to $245.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Evercore ISI dropped their price target on shares of 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 research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Constellation Brands currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $259.05.

Constellation Brands Stock Up 1.9 %

Shares of STZ opened at $182.99 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $222.11 and a 200 day moving average price of $236.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a current ratio of 1.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 49.19, a PEG ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 0.91. Constellation Brands, Inc. has a one year low of $176.51 and a one year high of $274.87.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 10th. The company reported $3.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.33 by ($0.08). The business had revenue of $2.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.53 billion. Constellation Brands had a return on equity of 26.55% and a net margin of 6.27%. Constellation Brands’s quarterly revenue was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.19 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Constellation Brands, Inc. will post 13.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Constellation Brands Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders 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 yield of 2.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. Constellation Brands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 108.60%.

Insider Transactions at Constellation Brands

In related news, major shareholder Wildstar Partners Llc sold 660 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.00, for a total transaction of $159,060.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 1,736,884 shares in the company, valued at approximately $418,589,044. This trade represents a 0.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director William T. Giles bought 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 17th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $186.39 per share, for a total transaction of $186,390.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, 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 disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 69,172 shares of company stock worth $16,778,841 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 12.19% of the company’s stock.

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.