Copeland Capital Management LLC Lowers Stock Position in Constellation Brands Inc (NYSE:STZ)

Copeland Capital Management LLC reduced its stake in Constellation Brands Inc (NYSE:STZ - Free Report) by 99.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 238 shares of the company's stock after selling 47,571 shares during the quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC's holdings in Constellation Brands were worth $44,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Constellation Brands by 13.3% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 15,534,787 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,433,188,000 after purchasing an additional 1,821,969 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors raised its stake in shares of Constellation Brands by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 9,755,602 shares of the company's stock worth $2,155,946,000 after acquiring an additional 324,690 shares in the last quarter. Berkshire Hathaway Inc purchased a new position in shares of Constellation Brands during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,242,976,000. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Constellation Brands by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,204,003 shares of the company's stock worth $705,844,000 after acquiring an additional 63,323 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors raised its stake in shares of Constellation Brands by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,901,975 shares of the company's stock worth $641,336,000 after acquiring an additional 18,557 shares in the last quarter. 77.34% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Constellation Brands

In other news, EVP Samuel J. Glaetzer sold 3,150 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $188.54, for a total transaction of $593,901.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 3,126 shares in the company, valued at approximately $589,376.04. The trade was a 50.19% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 12.45% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on shares of Constellation Brands from $201.00 to $196.00 in a research note on Friday, April 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $225.00 price target on shares of Constellation Brands and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Constellation Brands from $195.00 to $180.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Roth Capital decreased their price target on shares of Constellation Brands from $256.00 to $239.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, UBS Group set a $195.00 price target on shares of Constellation Brands and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Constellation Brands currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $211.91.

Constellation Brands Stock Performance

NYSE:STZ opened at $161.34 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $28.72 billion, a P/E ratio of -316.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 8.92 and a beta of 0.70. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $178.84 and its 200 day simple moving average is $185.58. Constellation Brands Inc has a twelve month low of $159.35 and a twelve month 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.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 9th. The company reported $2.63 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.28 by $0.35. The business had revenue of $2.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.14 billion. Constellation Brands had a negative net margin of 0.74% and a positive return on equity of 29.56%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.26 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Constellation Brands Inc will post 13.5 EPS for the current year.

Constellation Brands Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 29th were issued a $1.02 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 29th. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.53%. This is a boost from Constellation Brands's previous quarterly dividend of $1.01. Constellation Brands's 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.

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