Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. Sells 11,905 Shares of Constellation Brands Inc $STZ

Key Points

• Diamond Hill Capital Management trimmed its Constellation Brands stake by 4.9% in the fourth quarter, selling 11,905 shares and leaving it with 230,266 shares valued at about $31.8 million.
• Several other major institutional investors also adjusted holdings, and 77.34% of Constellation Brands shares are owned by institutions and hedge funds. Analyst sentiment remains generally positive, with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $175.37.
• Constellation Brands reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $1.90 per share on revenue of $1.92 billion, while also raising its quarterly dividend to $1.03 per share. The company’s stock was trading around $150.86, and an executive vice president also recently sold shares.

Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. lessened its stake in Constellation Brands Inc (NYSE:STZ - Free Report) by 4.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 230,266 shares of the company's stock after selling 11,905 shares during the quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. owned about 0.13% of Constellation Brands worth $31,767,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Constellation Brands by 3.3% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 18,202,611 shares of the company's stock worth $2,451,346,000 after purchasing an additional 573,766 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors lifted its position in shares of Constellation Brands by 0.7% during the third quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 4,337,054 shares of the company's stock worth $584,135,000 after purchasing an additional 28,036 shares in the last quarter. Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC lifted its position in shares of Constellation Brands by 1.0% during the third quarter. Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC now owns 3,710,940 shares of the company's stock worth $499,752,000 after purchasing an additional 35,085 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its position in shares of Constellation Brands by 76.7% during the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 3,126,644 shares of the company's stock worth $421,059,000 after purchasing an additional 1,356,903 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its position in shares of Constellation Brands by 15.5% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 2,160,202 shares of the company's stock worth $290,915,000 after purchasing an additional 290,701 shares in the last quarter. 77.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Constellation Brands from $176.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Constellation Brands in a research report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Constellation Brands from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Constellation Brands from $142.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of Constellation Brands from $146.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $175.37.

Insider Transactions at Constellation Brands

In related news, EVP James O. Bourdeau sold 4,407 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.24, for a total transaction of $631,258.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 9,109 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,304,773.16. The trade was a 32.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 12.45% of the company's stock.

Constellation Brands Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of NYSE STZ opened at $150.86 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $25.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.73, a P/E/G ratio of 3.32 and a beta of 0.43. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $152.74 and a 200 day moving average price of $148.60. 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 $186.40.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 8th. The company reported $1.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.71 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $1.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.84 billion. Constellation Brands had a net margin of 17.29% and a return on equity of 26.18%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.63 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Constellation Brands Inc will post 11.9 EPS for the current year.

Constellation Brands Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 14th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 29th were issued a dividend of $1.03 per share. This is an increase from Constellation Brands's previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. This represents a $4.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 29th. Constellation Brands's dividend payout ratio is presently 42.96%.

About Constellation Brands

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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