Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC Reduces Position in Constellation Brands Inc $STZ

Key Points

• Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC significantly reduced its holdings in Constellation Brands by 90.8% in the first quarter, now owning 34,928 shares valued at $6.41 million.
• Several institutional investors have adjusted their stakes in Constellation Brands, with a combined 77.34% of the stock owned by institutions and hedge funds.
• Analysts have set a consensus target price of $213.74 for Constellation Brands, reflecting a mix of ratings including eleven hold ratings and thirteen buy ratings.

Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC trimmed its position in Constellation Brands Inc (NYSE:STZ - Free Report) by 90.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 34,928 shares of the company's stock after selling 343,635 shares during the quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC's holdings in Constellation Brands were worth $6,410,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in STZ. Sit Investment Associates Inc. boosted its position in shares of Constellation Brands by 1.7% in the first quarter. Sit Investment Associates Inc. now owns 37,943 shares of the company's stock worth $6,963,000 after purchasing an additional 617 shares during the period. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in Constellation Brands by 20.5% in the 1st quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 5,065 shares of the company's stock worth $930,000 after buying an additional 860 shares during the period. S Bank Fund Management Ltd bought a new position in Constellation Brands in the 1st quarter worth $79,000. National Pension Service increased its stake in Constellation Brands by 12.5% in the 1st quarter. National Pension Service now owns 283,622 shares of the company's stock worth $52,050,000 after buying an additional 31,589 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in Constellation Brands by 5.6% during the first quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 49,634 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,110,000 after acquiring an additional 2,622 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.34% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on STZ. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Constellation Brands from $210.00 to $196.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, June 25th. Needham & Company LLC upped their price target on Constellation Brands from $195.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 3rd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Constellation Brands from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Constellation Brands from $180.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 3rd. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Constellation Brands from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, June 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Constellation Brands presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $213.74.

Insider Transactions at Constellation Brands

In other Constellation Brands news, EVP James O. Bourdeau sold 821 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.00, for a total transaction of $138,749.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 9,438 shares in the company, valued at $1,595,022. This represents a 8.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. 12.45% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Constellation Brands Price Performance

Shares of STZ traded down $1.4440 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $164.8560. 970,219 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,382,526. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a current ratio of 1.07. The company has a market cap of $29.06 billion, a PE ratio of -68.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 10.04 and a beta of 0.67. Constellation Brands Inc has a 52-week low of $159.35 and a 52-week high of $261.06. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $168.40 and a two-hundred day moving average of $176.05.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ - Get Free Report) last announced 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 31.41% and a negative net margin of 4.11%.The business had revenue of $2.52 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.57 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.57 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. Constellation Brands has set its FY 2026 guidance at 12.600-12.900 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Constellation Brands Inc will post 13.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Constellation Brands Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 14th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 30th were paid a dividend of $1.02 per share. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 30th. Constellation Brands's payout ratio is presently -170.71%.

Constellation Brands Company Profile

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.