New York State Teachers Retirement System Lowers Stock Holdings in Constellation Brands Inc (NYSE:STZ)

New York State Teachers Retirement System reduced its stake in Constellation Brands Inc (NYSE:STZ - Free Report) by 3.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 115,765 shares of the company's stock after selling 4,629 shares during the quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System owned 0.06% of Constellation Brands worth $21,245,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Mainstream Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Constellation Brands in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Constellation Brands in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Constellation Brands in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Optiver Holding B.V. acquired a new position in shares of Constellation Brands during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Constellation Brands during the first quarter worth about $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.34% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Constellation Brands

In other news, EVP Samuel J. Glaetzer sold 3,150 shares of Constellation Brands stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $188.54, for a total transaction of $593,901.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 3,126 shares in the company, valued at $589,376.04. The trade was a 50.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 12.45% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on STZ shares. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Constellation Brands from $210.00 to $196.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, June 25th. Bernstein Bank reduced their price target on Constellation Brands from $260.00 to $225.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on Constellation Brands from $201.00 to $196.00 in a research note on Friday, April 11th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on Constellation Brands from $260.00 to $215.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, DA Davidson reduced their target price on Constellation Brands from $272.00 to $241.00 in a report on Friday, April 11th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $211.91.

Constellation Brands Price Performance

Shares of Constellation Brands stock traded up $7.52 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $173.94. 6,257,126 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,914,128. Constellation Brands Inc has a fifty-two week low of $159.35 and a fifty-two week high of $264.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $177.93 and a 200 day moving average price of $184.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -341.06, a P/E/G ratio of 9.01 and a beta of 0.67.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 1st. The company reported $3.22 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.45 by ($0.23). Constellation Brands had a positive return on equity of 29.56% and a negative net margin of 0.74%. The company had revenue of $2.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.57 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.57 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was down 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Constellation Brands Inc will post 13.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Constellation Brands Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 29th were issued a $1.02 dividend. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.35%. This is a positive change from Constellation Brands's previous quarterly dividend of $1.01. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 29th. 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.