106,112 Shares in Constellation Brands Inc $STZ Bought by Jefferies Financial Group Inc.

Key Points

• Jefferies Financial Group opened a new position in Constellation Brands during the fourth quarter, buying 106,112 shares valued at about $14.64 million.
• Other institutions also added to their stakes, and institutional investors now own 77.34% of Constellation Brands’ stock.
• Analysts remain mostly positive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $175.37, while the company also recently raised its quarterly dividend to $1.03 per share.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Constellation Brands Inc (NYSE:STZ - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 106,112 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $14,639,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.06% of Constellation Brands as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. LSV Asset Management increased its position in Constellation Brands by 102.0% in the fourth quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 495,180 shares of the company's stock worth $68,315,000 after purchasing an additional 250,000 shares during the last quarter. RD Lewis Holdings Inc. bought a new stake in Constellation Brands in the fourth quarter worth $202,000. Pzena Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Constellation Brands in the fourth quarter worth $81,381,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its position in Constellation Brands by 6.4% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,739 shares of the company's stock worth $240,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Leonteq Securities AG bought a new stake in Constellation Brands in the fourth quarter worth $5,270,000. Institutional investors own 77.34% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently weighed in on STZ. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Constellation Brands from $142.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Constellation Brands in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on shares of Constellation Brands from $146.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $185.00 price objective on shares of Constellation Brands in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Finally, Evercore set a $175.00 price objective on shares of Constellation Brands and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, April 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $175.37.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP James O. Bourdeau sold 4,407 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.24, for a total transaction of $631,258.68. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 9,109 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,304,773.16. The trade was a 32.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 12.45% of the company's stock.

Constellation Brands Stock Down 0.0%

NYSE STZ opened at $149.50 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. The company has a fifty day moving average of $152.73 and a two-hundred day moving average of $148.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.59, a PEG ratio of 3.28 and a beta of 0.43. Constellation Brands Inc has a 52 week low of $126.45 and a 52 week high of $186.40.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 8th. The company reported $1.90 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.71 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $1.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.84 billion. Constellation Brands had a net margin of 17.29% and a return on equity of 26.18%. Constellation Brands's quarterly revenue was down 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.63 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Constellation Brands Inc will post 11.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Constellation Brands Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 14th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 29th were paid a dividend of $1.03 per share. This is an increase from Constellation Brands's previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. This represents a $4.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, April 29th. Constellation Brands's payout ratio is presently 42.96%.

Constellation Brands Company Profile

Constellation Brands, Inc is a leading producer and marketer of beer, wine and spirits, with operations spanning production, importation, marketing and distribution. The company's beverage portfolio includes a range of premium and mainstream wines and spirits alongside major imported beer brands; in the U.S. market Constellation is widely known for its role in bringing Mexican imports such as Corona and Modelo to American consumers. Constellation supplies retail, on‑premise and foodservice channels and supports its brands with national sales and marketing platforms and supply‑chain capabilities.

The company traces its roots to the Canandaigua Wine Company, founded by Marvin Sands in 1945, and evolved through organic growth and acquisition into a diversified beverage company.

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