Davis R M Inc. Sells 4,312 Shares of Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ)

Davis R M Inc. lessened its stake in Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ) by 5.6% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 72,451 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,312 shares during the period. Davis R M Inc.’s holdings in Constellation Brands were worth $16,012,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Clare Market Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Constellation Brands in the fourth quarter valued at about $204,000. Morton Community Bank lifted its stake in shares of Constellation Brands by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Morton Community Bank now owns 12,102 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,675,000 after buying an additional 260 shares during the period. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Constellation Brands by 41.2% in the fourth quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 2,308 shares of the company’s stock valued at $510,000 after buying an additional 673 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Constellation Brands by 7.4% in the fourth quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 21,135 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,671,000 after buying an additional 1,457 shares during the period. Finally, AlphaQuest LLC raised its position in Constellation Brands by 110,400.0% in the fourth quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 1,105 shares of the company’s stock worth $244,000 after purchasing an additional 1,104 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 77.34% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Constellation Brands

In other Constellation Brands news, Director William T. Giles acquired 1,000 shares of Constellation Brands stock in a transaction on Friday, January 17th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $186.39 per share, with a total value of $186,390.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 12.19% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently issued reports on STZ shares. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $240.00 price target on shares of Constellation Brands in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on shares of Constellation Brands from $293.00 to $289.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on shares of Constellation Brands from $270.00 to $260.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Roth Capital dropped their price objective on shares of Constellation Brands from $298.00 to $284.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered shares of Constellation Brands from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $220.00 to $202.00 in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Constellation Brands presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $253.24.

Constellation Brands Price Performance

STZ opened at $189.34 on Tuesday. Constellation Brands, Inc. has a one year low of $160.46 and a one year high of $274.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 0.46. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $183.67 and its 200-day simple moving average is $220.75. The stock has a market capitalization of $34.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 50.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.75.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) last announced 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 net margin of 6.27% and a return on equity of 26.55%. The business had revenue of $2.46 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.53 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.19 earnings per share. Constellation Brands’s revenue was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Constellation Brands, Inc. will post 13.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Constellation Brands Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th were paid a $1.01 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $4.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.13%. Constellation Brands’s payout ratio is presently 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.