Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. Sells 385 Shares of Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ)

Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. lowered its position in Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ) by 12.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,725 shares of the company’s stock after selling 385 shares during the quarter. Meridian Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Constellation Brands were worth $702,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. New Millennium Group LLC bought a new stake in Constellation Brands during the second quarter valued at about $25,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. bought a new position in shares of Constellation Brands during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN purchased a new stake in Constellation Brands during the second quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Constellation Brands in the second quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Constellation Brands in the second quarter worth $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.34% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Constellation Brands

In other Constellation Brands news, CEO William A. Newlands sold 7,426 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $237.24, for a total transaction of $1,761,744.24. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 7,274 shares in the company, valued at $1,725,683.76. This represents a 50.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP James A. Jr. Sabia sold 36,086 shares of Constellation Brands stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $242.99, for a total value of $8,768,537.14. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,042 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,898,045.58. The trade was a 69.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 189,296 shares of company stock worth $45,899,031 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 12.19% of the company’s stock.

Constellation Brands Stock Down 1.9 %

NYSE STZ opened at $237.51 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $244.13 and a 200 day moving average price of $248.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 1.25. The company has a market cap of $43.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 76.86, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.90. Constellation Brands, Inc. has a one year low of $224.76 and a one year high of $274.87.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 3rd. The company reported $4.32 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.08 by $0.24. Constellation Brands had a return on equity of 25.34% and a net margin of 5.29%. The firm had revenue of $2.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.95 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.70 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Constellation Brands, Inc. will post 13.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Constellation Brands Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 21st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 5th will be paid a $1.01 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 5th. This represents a $4.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.70%. Constellation Brands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 130.74%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on STZ shares. Evercore ISI lowered their price objective on Constellation Brands from $310.00 to $300.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Constellation Brands from $307.00 to $293.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Constellation Brands from $305.00 to $280.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 26th. UBS Group dropped their price target on Constellation Brands from $320.00 to $295.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Finally, Bank of America reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $255.00 price objective (down previously from $300.00) on shares of Constellation Brands in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Constellation Brands has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $290.47.

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.