Vanguard Group Inc. Sells 338,278 Shares of Constellation Brands Inc $STZ

Vanguard Group Inc. lessened its position in Constellation Brands Inc (NYSE:STZ) by 1.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 17,864,333 shares of the company’s stock after selling 338,278 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 0.10% of Constellation Brands worth $2,464,563,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Constellation Brands during the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. Stance Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Constellation Brands during the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. GoalVest Advisory LLC bought a new position in shares of Constellation Brands during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC bought a new position in shares of Constellation Brands during the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Constellation Brands during the 4th quarter worth about $39,000. Institutional investors own 77.34% of the company’s stock.

Constellation Brands Trading Down 3.2%

STZ opened at $150.44 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.55. The company has a market cap of $26.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.40 and a beta of 0.44. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $154.62 and a 200 day simple moving average of $147.60. Constellation Brands Inc has a fifty-two week low of $126.45 and a fifty-two week high of $196.91.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 8th. The company reported $1.90 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.71 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $1.92 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.84 billion. Constellation Brands had a net margin of 17.29% and a return on equity of 26.18%. Constellation Brands’s revenue for the quarter was down 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.63 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Constellation Brands Inc will post 11.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Constellation Brands Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 14th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 29th will be given a dividend of $1.03 per share. This is a positive change from Constellation Brands’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. This represents a $4.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 29th. Constellation Brands’s payout ratio is currently 42.54%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on STZ shares. Needham & Company LLC lifted their target price on shares of Constellation Brands from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Constellation Brands in a research report on Friday, April 10th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $190.00 target price on shares of Constellation Brands in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Constellation Brands from $142.00 to $154.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Constellation Brands from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $178.14.

Constellation Brands Profile

Constellation Brands, Inc is a leading producer and marketer of beer, wine and spirits, with operations spanning production, importation, marketing and distribution. The company’s beverage portfolio includes a range of premium and mainstream wines and spirits alongside major imported beer brands; in the U.S. market Constellation is widely known for its role in bringing Mexican imports such as Corona and Modelo to American consumers. Constellation supplies retail, on?premise and foodservice channels and supports its brands with national sales and marketing platforms and supply?chain capabilities.

The company traces its roots to the Canandaigua Wine Company, founded by Marvin Sands in 1945, and evolved through organic growth and acquisition into a diversified beverage company.