5,624,324 Shares in Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ) Acquired by Berkshire Hathaway Inc

Berkshire Hathaway Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm acquired 5,624,324 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,242,976,000. Constellation Brands makes up approximately 0.5% of Berkshire Hathaway Inc's holdings, making the stock its 19th largest position. Berkshire Hathaway Inc owned approximately 3.11% of Constellation Brands at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Constellation Brands by 13.3% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 15,534,787 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,433,188,000 after acquiring an additional 1,821,969 shares during the period. Capital World Investors lifted its position in shares of Constellation Brands by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 9,755,602 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,155,946,000 after acquiring an additional 324,690 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Constellation Brands by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,204,003 shares of the company's stock worth $705,844,000 after purchasing an additional 63,323 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its stake in Constellation Brands by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,901,975 shares of the company's stock worth $641,336,000 after purchasing an additional 18,557 shares during the period. Finally, Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC boosted its position in shares of Constellation Brands by 42.9% during the fourth quarter. Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC now owns 2,454,258 shares of the company's stock worth $542,391,000 after acquiring an additional 736,780 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.34% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

STZ has been the subject of a number of research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Constellation Brands from $203.00 to $194.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Constellation Brands from $200.00 to $190.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Roth Capital lowered their price objective on Constellation Brands from $298.00 to $284.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on shares of Constellation Brands from $289.00 to $233.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Roth Mkm dropped their price target on shares of Constellation Brands from $284.00 to $256.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $225.74.

Constellation Brands Trading Down 0.4 %

STZ traded down $0.86 on Friday, hitting $190.53. The company had a trading volume of 679,994 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,722,696. 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 firm has a market cap of $33.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.22, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.75. The company's fifty day moving average price is $183.02 and its 200 day moving average price is $201.49. Constellation Brands, Inc. has a 1 year low of $160.46 and a 1 year high of $265.70.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 9th. The company reported $2.63 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.28 by $0.35. The firm had revenue of $2.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.14 billion. Constellation Brands had a net margin of 6.27% and a return on equity of 26.55%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.26 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Constellation Brands, Inc. will post 13.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Constellation Brands Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 29th will be paid a dividend of $1.02 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 29th. This is a positive change from Constellation Brands's previous quarterly dividend of $1.01. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.14%. Constellation Brands's dividend payout ratio is -800.00%.

About Constellation Brands

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.