Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ) Shares Sold by Korea Investment CORP

Korea Investment CORP decreased its stake in shares of Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ) by 12.7% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 150,064 shares of the company’s stock after selling 21,870 shares during the quarter. Korea Investment CORP’s holdings in Constellation Brands were worth $33,164,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mainstream Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Constellation Brands during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Constellation Brands during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA purchased a new position in Constellation Brands during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA acquired a new position in Constellation Brands in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in shares of Constellation Brands by 887.5% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 158 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 142 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.34% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on STZ. Barclays decreased their price objective on Constellation Brands from $205.00 to $203.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on Constellation Brands from $293.00 to $289.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Morgan Stanley downgraded Constellation Brands from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $220.00 to $202.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $203.00 target price (down previously from $262.00) on shares of Constellation Brands in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Citigroup downgraded shares of Constellation Brands from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $260.00 to $200.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Constellation Brands has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $249.18.

Constellation Brands Stock Performance

Shares of STZ stock opened at $183.69 on Friday. Constellation Brands, Inc. has a 12 month low of $160.46 and a 12 month high of $274.87. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The company has a market cap of $33.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.38, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.75. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $177.19 and a 200 day moving average price of $214.99.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 10th. The company reported $3.25 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.33 by ($0.08). The business had revenue of $2.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.53 billion. Constellation Brands had a return on equity of 26.55% and a net margin of 6.27%. Constellation Brands’s revenue was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.19 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Constellation Brands, Inc. will post 13.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Constellation Brands Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th were given a dividend of $1.01 per share. This represents a $4.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.20%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. Constellation Brands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 108.60%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Constellation Brands news, Director William T. Giles bought 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 17th. The shares were 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 owns 1,463 shares in the company, valued at approximately $272,688.57. The trade was a 215.98 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 12.19% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.