Poehling Capital Management INC. Raises Stock Holdings in Constellation Brands Inc $STZ

Key Points

• Poehling Capital Management boosted its Constellation Brands stake by 48.6% in the fourth quarter, ending with 30,281 shares worth about $4.18 million.
• Other institutional investors also increased positions in STZ, and hedge funds now own 77.34% of the company’s stock.
• Constellation Brands reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, beating EPS and revenue estimates, while also raising its quarterly dividend to $1.03 per share.

Poehling Capital Management INC. increased its position in Constellation Brands Inc (NYSE:STZ - Free Report) by 48.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 30,281 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 9,908 shares during the period. Poehling Capital Management INC.'s holdings in Constellation Brands were worth $4,178,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in STZ. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in Constellation Brands by 23.0% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,001 shares of the company's stock worth $221,000 after acquiring an additional 187 shares during the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP purchased a new position in Constellation Brands in the 1st quarter worth $2,409,000. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC raised its stake in shares of Constellation Brands by 69.9% during the 2nd quarter. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC now owns 1,026 shares of the company's stock valued at $167,000 after buying an additional 422 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia raised its stake in shares of Constellation Brands by 3.6% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 17,347 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,822,000 after buying an additional 599 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Constellation Brands by 5.0% during the 2nd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 23,732 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,861,000 after buying an additional 1,127 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.34% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Constellation Brands

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

Constellation Brands Price Performance

Shares of Constellation Brands stock opened at $146.22 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. Constellation Brands Inc has a twelve month low of $126.45 and a twelve month high of $193.50. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $152.68 and a 200 day moving average price of $148.31. The firm has a market cap of $25.18 billion, a PE ratio of 15.25, a P/E/G ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.43.

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

Constellation Brands Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 14th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 29th were paid a $1.03 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 29th. This represents a $4.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. This is a boost from Constellation Brands's previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. Constellation Brands's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 42.96%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on STZ. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Constellation Brands from $155.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. Roth Mkm reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Constellation Brands in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Constellation Brands from $176.00 to $186.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Constellation Brands in a research note on Monday. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price objective on Constellation Brands from $142.00 to $154.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research note on Friday, April 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $175.37.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.