Constellation Brands Inc $STZ Shares Sold by Capital Research Global Investors

Key Points

• Capital Research Global Investors cut its stake in Constellation Brands by 99.2% in the fourth quarter, selling 492,219 shares and leaving it with just 4,121 shares worth about $569,000.
• Constellation Brands reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $1.90 versus the $1.71 estimate and revenue of $1.92 billion versus $1.84 billion expected, though revenue still fell 11.3% year over year.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $1.03 per share, and Wall Street maintains a Moderate Buy consensus with a $175.26 average price target.

Capital Research Global Investors decreased its stake in Constellation Brands Inc (NYSE:STZ - Free Report) by 99.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,121 shares of the company's stock after selling 492,219 shares during the quarter. Capital Research Global Investors' holdings in Constellation Brands were worth $569,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of STZ. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in shares of Constellation Brands by 23.0% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,001 shares of the company's stock valued at $221,000 after purchasing an additional 187 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP acquired a new stake in shares of Constellation Brands in the first quarter valued at about $2,409,000. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC grew its position in shares of Constellation Brands by 69.9% in the second quarter. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC now owns 1,026 shares of the company's stock valued at $167,000 after purchasing an additional 422 shares during the period. Bank of Nova Scotia grew its position in shares of Constellation Brands by 3.6% in the second quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 17,347 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,822,000 after purchasing an additional 599 shares during the period. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Constellation Brands by 5.0% in the second quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 23,732 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,861,000 after purchasing an additional 1,127 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.34% of the company's stock.

Constellation Brands Stock Performance

STZ opened at $139.97 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.10 billion, a PE ratio of 14.60, a PEG ratio of 3.26 and a beta of 0.39. Constellation Brands Inc has a twelve month low of $126.45 and a twelve month high of $178.13. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $150.27 and its 200 day moving average price is $149.68. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 8th. The company reported $1.90 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.71 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $1.92 billion for 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.63 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Constellation Brands Inc will post 11.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Constellation Brands Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 14th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 29th were issued a $1.03 dividend. This represents a $4.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 29th. This is a positive change from Constellation Brands's previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. Constellation Brands's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 42.96%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently issued reports 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 report on Friday, April 10th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of Constellation Brands from $146.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on shares of Constellation Brands from $154.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Constellation Brands from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $142.00 to $190.00 in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC boosted their price target on shares of Constellation Brands from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Constellation Brands has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $175.26.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Constellation Brands news, EVP James O. Bourdeau sold 4,407 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.24, for a total value of $631,258.68. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 9,109 shares in the company, valued at $1,304,773.16. The trade was a 32.61% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 12.45% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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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