Berkshire Hathaway Inc Sells 400,000 Shares of Constellation Brands Inc $STZ

Key Points

• Berkshire Hathaway trimmed its Constellation Brands stake by 400,000 shares in the fourth quarter, a 3.0% reduction, leaving it with 13 million shares worth about $1.79 billion.
• Wall Street sentiment on STZ remains constructive, with analysts assigning a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $174.68.
• Constellation Brands reported quarterly results that beat expectations, posting EPS of $1.90 versus $1.71 expected, and it also raised its quarterly dividend to $1.03 per share.

Berkshire Hathaway Inc trimmed its position in shares of Constellation Brands Inc (NYSE:STZ - Free Report) by 3.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 13,000,000 shares of the company's stock after selling 400,000 shares during the period. Constellation Brands makes up 0.7% of Berkshire Hathaway Inc's portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. Berkshire Hathaway Inc owned approximately 7.50% of Constellation Brands worth $1,793,480,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in STZ. Stance Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Constellation Brands in the third quarter valued at about $26,000. GoalVest Advisory LLC bought a new stake in shares of Constellation Brands in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Elyxium Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Constellation Brands in the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. GW&K Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Constellation Brands by 58.9% in the fourth quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 267 shares of the company's stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 99 shares during the period. Finally, Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Constellation Brands in the fourth quarter valued at about $39,000. Institutional investors own 77.34% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on STZ shares. Evercore set a $175.00 target price on shares of Constellation Brands and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Constellation Brands in a report on Monday, May 18th. Needham & Company LLC raised their price objective on shares of Constellation Brands from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 10th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Constellation Brands from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, April 10th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on shares of Constellation Brands from $154.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, April 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $174.68.

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 value of $631,258.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 9,109 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,304,773.16. The trade was a 32.61% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 12.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Constellation Brands Price Performance

Shares of STZ stock opened at $138.79 on Thursday. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $149.38 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $150.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 1.08. Constellation Brands Inc has a 52-week low of $126.45 and a 52-week high of $178.13. The stock has a market cap of $23.90 billion, a PE ratio of 14.47, a PEG ratio of 3.38 and a beta of 0.39.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 8th. The company reported $1.90 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.71 by $0.19. Constellation Brands had a net margin of 17.29% and a return on equity of 26.18%. The firm had revenue of $1.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.84 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.63 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was down 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Constellation Brands Inc will post 11.87 EPS for the current year.

Constellation Brands Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 14th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 29th were issued a dividend of $1.03 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, April 29th. This represents a $4.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. This is a boost from Constellation Brands's previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. Constellation Brands's dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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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