SWS Partners Trims Stock Position in Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ)

SWS Partners cut its holdings in shares of Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ) by 40.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 6,414 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,328 shares during the period. SWS Partners’ holdings in Constellation Brands were worth $1,417,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Constellation Brands by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,144,428 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,841,048,000 after acquiring an additional 402,211 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its position in shares of Constellation Brands by 1.2% in the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,853,081 shares of the company’s stock valued at $477,515,000 after buying an additional 21,454 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Constellation Brands by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,782,964 shares of the company’s stock worth $394,035,000 after buying an additional 38,786 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its stake in Constellation Brands by 1,844.7% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 924,274 shares of the company’s stock valued at $204,265,000 after acquiring an additional 876,745 shares during the period. Finally, National Pension Service increased its holdings in Constellation Brands by 13.6% in the 3rd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 381,755 shares of the company’s stock worth $98,374,000 after acquiring an additional 45,707 shares in the last quarter. 77.34% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Constellation Brands

In other news, Director William T. Giles purchased 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 17th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $186.39 per share, for a total transaction of $186,390.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,463 shares in the company, valued at approximately $272,688.57. This represents a 215.98 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 12.19% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on STZ. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Constellation Brands from $295.00 to $275.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on Constellation Brands in a report on Monday, November 25th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $261.00 price objective on the stock. Morgan Stanley cut Constellation Brands from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $220.00 to $202.00 in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $293.00 target price on shares of Constellation Brands in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price target on Constellation Brands from $265.00 to $223.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $253.43.

Constellation Brands Price Performance

STZ stock opened at $175.38 on Tuesday. Constellation Brands, Inc. has a 52-week low of $160.46 and a 52-week high of $274.87. The company has a quick ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The stock has a market cap of $31.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.75. The business has a fifty day moving average of $187.98 and a two-hundred day moving average of $222.99.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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). Constellation Brands had a return on equity of 26.55% and a net margin of 6.27%. The business had revenue of $2.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.53 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.19 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Constellation Brands, Inc. will post 13.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Constellation Brands Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were given a dividend of $1.01 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $4.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.30%. Constellation Brands’s payout ratio is currently 108.60%.

Constellation Brands Profile

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.