Constellation Brands, Inc. (STZ) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $1.01 on February 21st

Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ) declared a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, January 8th,RTT News reports. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be paid a dividend of 1.01 per share on Friday, February 21st. This represents a $4.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.23%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th.

Constellation Brands has raised its dividend by an average of 9.0% annually over the last three years. Constellation Brands has a dividend payout ratio of 24.4% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect Constellation Brands to earn $15.18 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $4.04 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 26.6%.

Constellation Brands Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:STZ traded down $37.71 during trading on Friday, hitting $181.57. 8,696,409 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,890,933. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 0.53. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $232.90 and a 200 day moving average of $242.14. The company has a market cap of $32.97 billion, a PE ratio of 58.76, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.75. Constellation Brands has a 52-week low of $179.55 and a 52-week high of $274.87.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 10th. The company reported $3.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.33 by ($0.08). The firm had revenue of $2.46 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.53 billion. Constellation Brands had a return on equity of 25.34% and a net margin of 5.29%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.19 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Constellation Brands will post 13.57 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on STZ. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $308.00 price objective on shares of Constellation Brands in a report on Tuesday. Evercore ISI cut their target price on shares of Constellation Brands from $310.00 to $300.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $280.00 price target on shares of Constellation Brands in a report on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Constellation Brands from $293.00 to $262.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their target price on shares of Constellation Brands from $270.00 to $260.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Constellation Brands presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $284.75.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Samuel J. Glaetzer sold 1,510 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $245.57, for a total transaction of $370,810.70. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 4,970 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,220,482.90. This represents a 23.30 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO William A. Newlands sold 7,426 shares of Constellation Brands stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $237.24, for a total value of $1,761,744.24. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 7,274 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,725,683.76. This represents a 50.52 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 189,956 shares of company stock valued at $46,058,091 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 12.19% of the company’s stock.

Constellation Brands Company 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.