Ethic Inc. Raises Position in Constellation Brands Inc $STZ

Ethic Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Constellation Brands Inc (NYSE:STZ) by 12.0% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 33,549 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,601 shares during the period. Ethic Inc.’s holdings in Constellation Brands were worth $4,628,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in Constellation Brands in the third quarter valued at $26,000. Stance Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Constellation Brands during the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. GoalVest Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in Constellation Brands during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Constellation Brands in the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, CVA Family Office LLC raised its position in Constellation Brands by 713.2% in the 3rd quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 309 shares of the company’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 271 shares in the last quarter. 77.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on STZ shares. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Constellation Brands from $176.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Constellation Brands from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $142.00 to $190.00 in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Constellation Brands in a report on Monday, May 4th. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Constellation Brands in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Constellation Brands from $151.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, April 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $176.30.

Constellation Brands Stock Performance

Shares of Constellation Brands stock opened at $148.00 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. Constellation Brands Inc has a 52 week low of $126.45 and a 52 week high of $196.91. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $154.20 and its two-hundred day moving average is $147.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.43, a P/E/G ratio of 3.25 and a beta of 0.43.

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

Constellation Brands Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 14th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 29th will be given a $1.03 dividend. This represents a $4.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. This is a boost from Constellation Brands’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 29th. Constellation Brands’s dividend payout ratio is presently 42.96%.

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.