Sterling Investment Counsel LLC Boosts Position in Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ)

Sterling Investment Counsel LLC raised its stake in shares of Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ) by 3.0% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 2,752 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 80 shares during the quarter. Sterling Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Constellation Brands were worth $709,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC bought a new position in Constellation Brands in the second quarter worth $119,394,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Constellation Brands by 3.5% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,705,793 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,724,686,000 after purchasing an additional 462,891 shares in the last quarter. Howland Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Constellation Brands by 3.0% in the first quarter. Howland Capital Management LLC now owns 141,314 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,403,000 after purchasing an additional 4,051 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Sarl raised its holdings in Constellation Brands by 35.9% in the first quarter. Capital International Sarl now owns 10,462 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,843,000 after purchasing an additional 2,764 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Chemung Canal Trust Co. raised its holdings in Constellation Brands by 629.7% in the first quarter. Chemung Canal Trust Co. now owns 17,614 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,787,000 after purchasing an additional 15,200 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.34% of the company’s stock.

Constellation Brands Price Performance

NYSE STZ traded down $1.21 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $240.40. 277,989 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,187,685. The company has a market capitalization of $43.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.75. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $246.55 and a 200-day simple moving average of $251.01. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31. Constellation Brands, Inc. has a 12-month low of $227.64 and a 12-month high of $274.87.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 3rd. The company reported $4.32 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.08 by $0.24. The business had revenue of $2.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.95 billion. Constellation Brands had a return on equity of 25.34% and a net margin of 5.29%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.70 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Constellation Brands, Inc. will post 13.57 EPS for the current year.

Constellation Brands Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 21st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 5th will be issued a $1.01 dividend. This represents a $4.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.68%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 5th. Constellation Brands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.10%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on STZ. Evercore ISI cut their target price on Constellation Brands from $310.00 to $300.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $308.00 target price on shares of Constellation Brands in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Roth Mkm reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $298.00 target price on shares of Constellation Brands in a research note on Friday, October 4th. UBS Group cut their target price on Constellation Brands from $320.00 to $295.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Constellation Brands from $305.00 to $280.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 26th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $290.47.

Insider Transactions at Constellation Brands

In other news, CFO Garth Hankinson sold 13,583 shares of Constellation Brands stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $240.00, for a total value of $3,259,920.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 11,702 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,808,480. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Garth Hankinson sold 13,583 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $240.00, for a total transaction of $3,259,920.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 11,702 shares in the company, valued at $2,808,480. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert Sands sold 119,274 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $242.37, for a total value of $28,908,439.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 431,729 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $104,638,157.73. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 136,221 shares of company stock worth $33,007,175. 12.19% of the stock is currently owned by company 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.