NS Partners Ltd Acquires 611 Shares of Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ)

NS Partners Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ) by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 28,649 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 611 shares during the quarter. NS Partners Ltd’s holdings in Constellation Brands were worth $7,383,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Capital International Investors raised its position in Constellation Brands by 39.4% during the first quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 11,685,249 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,175,583,000 after purchasing an additional 3,304,709 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors lifted its position in Constellation Brands by 8.7% in the 1st quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 9,040,669 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,456,892,000 after buying an additional 723,549 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in Constellation Brands by 23,184.7% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 499,689 shares of the company’s stock valued at $128,765,000 after acquiring an additional 497,543 shares during the last quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Constellation Brands during the second quarter worth approximately $119,394,000. Finally, Boston Partners lifted its holdings in shares of Constellation Brands by 50.9% in the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 975,589 shares of the company’s stock worth $265,099,000 after acquiring an additional 328,881 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.34% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

STZ has been the topic of several recent research reports. TD Cowen lowered shares of Constellation Brands from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $300.00 to $270.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Barclays lowered their target price on Constellation Brands from $309.00 to $300.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Roth Mkm restated a “buy” rating and set a $298.00 price target on shares of Constellation Brands in a research report on Friday, October 4th. UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of 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 reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $255.00 price target (down previously from $300.00) on shares of Constellation Brands in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Four 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 presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $290.47.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP James A. Jr. Sabia sold 36,086 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $242.99, for a total transaction of $8,768,537.14. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO William A. Newlands sold 7,426 shares of Constellation Brands stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 7,274 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,725,683.76. This trade represents a 50.52 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 189,296 shares of company stock worth $45,899,031 over the last 90 days. 12.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Constellation Brands Price Performance

STZ opened at $240.44 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31. The company has a market cap of $43.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 77.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.90. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $243.70 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $247.79. Constellation Brands, Inc. has a 12-month low of $224.76 and a 12-month high of $274.87.

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

Constellation Brands Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 21st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 5th will be paid a dividend of $1.01 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 5th. This represents a $4.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.68%. Constellation Brands’s dividend payout ratio is currently 130.74%.

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.