WD Rutherford LLC Sells 7,800 Shares of Constellation Brands Inc (NYSE:STZ)

WD Rutherford LLC reduced its stake in Constellation Brands Inc (NYSE:STZ - Free Report) by 76.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,417 shares of the company's stock after selling 7,800 shares during the quarter. WD Rutherford LLC's holdings in Constellation Brands were worth $444,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Constellation Brands by 13.3% in the 4th 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 boosted its position in Constellation Brands by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 9,755,602 shares of the company's stock worth $2,155,946,000 after purchasing an additional 324,690 shares during the period. Berkshire Hathaway Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Constellation Brands in the fourth quarter worth about $1,242,976,000. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Constellation Brands by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,204,003 shares of the company's stock valued at $705,844,000 after buying an additional 63,323 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors grew its position in Constellation Brands by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,901,975 shares of the company's stock valued at $641,336,000 after acquiring an additional 18,557 shares in the last quarter. 77.34% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Samuel J. Glaetzer sold 3,150 shares of the firm'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 directly owns 3,126 shares in the company, valued at $589,376.04. This trade represents a 50.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 12.45% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on STZ. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Constellation Brands from $203.00 to $194.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Constellation Brands from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Barclays lifted their target price on Constellation Brands from $203.00 to $207.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on shares of Constellation Brands from $201.00 to $196.00 in a report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Constellation Brands from $195.00 to $180.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $215.87.

Constellation Brands Stock Performance

Constellation Brands stock traded down $0.57 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $159.99. The stock had a trading volume of 2,250,392 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,831,986. Constellation Brands Inc has a fifty-two week low of $159.64 and a fifty-two week high of $265.70. The company has a market cap of $28.48 billion, a PE ratio of -313.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 8.70 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a 50-day moving average of $182.59 and a two-hundred day moving average of $189.92. 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 posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 9th. The company reported $2.63 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.26 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Constellation Brands Inc will post 13.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Constellation Brands Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 29th were given a $1.02 dividend. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 29th. This is a boost from Constellation Brands's previous quarterly dividend of $1.01. Constellation Brands's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -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.