Vanguard Group Inc. Lowers Stock Position in Constellation Brands Inc $STZ

Key Points

• Vanguard trimmed its stake in Constellation Brands by 1.9% in Q4, selling 338,278 shares and leaving it with 17,864,333 shares (about 10.3% of the company) valued at roughly $2.46 billion.
• Analysts are largely positive after recent reviews—several firms raised price targets (TD Cowen to $190, Needham and RBC to $185) and MarketBeat shows a consensus rating of Moderate Buy with a $178.14 target.
• Operationally, Constellation beat EPS estimates ($1.90 vs. $1.71) despite revenue falling 11.3% year-over-year to $1.92 billion, and it raised its quarterly dividend to $1.03 (annualized $4.12, ~2.7% yield).

Vanguard Group Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Constellation Brands Inc (NYSE:STZ - Free Report) by 1.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 17,864,333 shares of the company's stock after selling 338,278 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 10.30% of Constellation Brands worth $2,464,563,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in Constellation Brands by 650.6% in the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,769,741 shares of the company's stock worth $287,889,000 after buying an additional 1,533,961 shares in the last quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Constellation Brands by 1,249.7% in the 2nd quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC now owns 476,702 shares of the company's stock worth $77,550,000 after buying an additional 441,382 shares in the last quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Constellation Brands by 26.8% in the 3rd quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 1,664,151 shares of the company's stock worth $224,111,000 after buying an additional 351,241 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in Constellation Brands by 15.5% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 2,160,202 shares of the company's stock worth $290,915,000 after buying an additional 290,701 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Constellation Brands by 1,056.3% in the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 314,384 shares of the company's stock worth $42,338,000 after buying an additional 287,195 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.34% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on STZ shares. Needham & Company LLC boosted their price objective on shares of Constellation Brands from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 10th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Constellation Brands from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $185.00 price objective on shares of Constellation Brands in a report on Friday, April 10th. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Constellation Brands from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their target price for the company from $142.00 to $190.00 in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Constellation Brands from $146.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, April 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Constellation Brands currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $178.14.

Constellation Brands Stock Down 3.2%

Shares of NYSE:STZ opened at $150.44 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 1.08. The company has a market cap of $26.09 billion, a PE ratio of 15.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.40 and a beta of 0.44. Constellation Brands Inc has a 52 week low of $126.45 and a 52 week high of $196.91. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $154.62 and a 200 day simple moving average of $147.60.

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

Constellation Brands Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 14th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 29th will be paid a $1.03 dividend. This represents a $4.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 29th. This is a boost from Constellation Brands's previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. Constellation Brands's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 42.54%.

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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