Empirical Asset Management LLC Takes $8.79 Million Position in Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ)

Empirical Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 39,786 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,793,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in Constellation Brands by 887.5% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 158 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Eastern Bank acquired a new position in shares of Constellation Brands in the third quarter valued at approximately $39,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Constellation Brands during the third quarter worth approximately $42,000. Truvestments Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Constellation Brands during the third quarter worth $60,000. Finally, Continuum Advisory LLC grew its position in Constellation Brands by 68.0% in the 3rd quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 252 shares of the company’s stock valued at $61,000 after buying an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.34% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on STZ. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and set a $203.00 price objective (down previously from $262.00) on shares of Constellation Brands in a research report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Constellation Brands from $295.00 to $275.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $201.00 price objective (down previously from $310.00) on shares of Constellation Brands in a report on Monday. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and set a $280.00 target price on shares of Constellation Brands in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Piper Sandler reduced their price target on Constellation Brands from $300.00 to $245.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $261.40.

Insider Activity

In other Constellation Brands news, EVP James A. Jr. Sabia sold 36,086 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $242.99, for a total value of $8,768,537.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,042 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,898,045.58. The trade was a 69.23 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, major shareholder Wildstar Partners Llc sold 660 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.00, for a total value of $159,060.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 1,736,884 shares in the company, valued at $418,589,044. This trade represents a 0.04 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 69,172 shares of company stock worth $16,778,841 over the last three months. 12.19% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Constellation Brands Price Performance

Shares of NYSE STZ opened at $184.66 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $228.73 and its 200 day moving average price is $239.85. Constellation Brands, Inc. has a 52 week low of $176.51 and a 52 week high of $274.87. The stock has a market cap of $33.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 49.64, a PEG ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.91.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 10th. The company reported $3.25 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.33 by ($0.08). Constellation Brands had a net margin of 5.29% and a return on equity of 25.34%. The business had revenue of $2.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.53 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $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 forecast that Constellation Brands, Inc. will post 13.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Constellation Brands Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be issued a $1.01 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $4.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.19%. Constellation Brands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 108.60%.

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.