Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. Acquires 2,622 Shares of Constellation Brands Inc (NYSE:STZ)

Key Points

• Resona Asset Management increased its stake in Constellation Brands by 5.6%, acquiring an additional 2,622 shares, bringing its total holdings to 49,634 shares, valued at approximately $9.11 million.
• Wall Street analysts have set a consensus price target of $213.74 for Constellation Brands, with a majority rating the stock as a "Moderate Buy" following various target price adjustments.
• Constellation Brands reported earnings of $3.22 per share for the recent quarter, missing expectations, and announced a quarterly dividend of $1.02 per share with a yield of 2.4%.

Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in Constellation Brands Inc (NYSE:STZ - Free Report) by 5.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 49,634 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 2,622 shares during the quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd.'s holdings in Constellation Brands were worth $9,110,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of STZ. Berkshire Hathaway Inc acquired a new stake in Constellation Brands in the 4th quarter worth about $1,242,976,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Constellation Brands by 18.6% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 18,417,604 shares of the company's stock worth $3,379,999,000 after purchasing an additional 2,882,817 shares in the last quarter. D1 Capital Partners L.P. raised its stake in Constellation Brands by 186.6% in the 4th quarter. D1 Capital Partners L.P. now owns 1,527,689 shares of the company's stock worth $337,619,000 after purchasing an additional 994,639 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Constellation Brands by 7,602.6% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 396,220 shares of the company's stock valued at $72,714,000 after buying an additional 391,076 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in shares of Constellation Brands in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $63,377,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.34% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Barclays set a $202.00 target price on shares of Constellation Brands and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price 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. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $225.00 target price on shares of Constellation Brands and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, June 27th. CJS Securities dropped their target price on shares of Constellation Brands from $196.00 to $194.00 in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Constellation Brands from $170.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, July 3rd. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Constellation Brands presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $213.74.

Constellation Brands Stock Down 0.7%

STZ traded down $1.25 during trading on Friday, hitting $168.26. 1,521,061 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,584,290. The company has a quick ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30. The business's 50 day moving average is $168.67 and its two-hundred day moving average is $176.35. Constellation Brands Inc has a fifty-two week low of $159.35 and a fifty-two week high of $261.06. The stock has a market cap of $29.66 billion, a P/E ratio of -70.40, a PEG ratio of 10.18 and a beta of 0.67.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data 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). The business had revenue of $2.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.57 billion. Constellation Brands had a positive return on equity of 31.41% and a negative net margin of 4.11%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.57 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Constellation Brands Inc will post 13.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Constellation Brands Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 30th were issued a $1.02 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 30th. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Constellation Brands's dividend payout ratio is currently -170.71%.

Insider Activity at Constellation Brands

In related news, EVP James O. Bourdeau sold 821 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $169.00, for a total transaction of $138,749.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 9,438 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,595,022. This represents a 8.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 12.45% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.