Pinnacle Associates Ltd. Purchases 1,577 Shares of Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ)

Pinnacle Associates Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ) by 6.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 24,490 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,577 shares during the period. Pinnacle Associates Ltd.’s holdings in Constellation Brands were worth $6,301,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Stifel Financial Corp increased its holdings in shares of Constellation Brands by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 192,585 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,570,000 after purchasing an additional 5,951 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV raised its position in Constellation Brands by 100.4% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 250,945 shares of the company’s stock worth $60,666,000 after buying an additional 125,730 shares during the last quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC bought a new position in Constellation Brands during the 2nd quarter valued at about $119,394,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Constellation Brands by 3.5% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,705,793 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,724,686,000 after acquiring an additional 462,891 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Howland Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Constellation Brands by 3.0% in the first quarter. Howland Capital Management LLC now owns 141,314 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,403,000 after acquiring an additional 4,051 shares during the period. 77.34% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Garth Hankinson sold 13,583 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $240.00, for a total transaction of $3,259,920.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 11,702 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,808,480. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, CFO Garth Hankinson sold 13,583 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $240.00, for a total value of $3,259,920.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 11,702 shares in the company, valued at $2,808,480. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Daniel J. Mccarthy sold 1,854 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, July 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $252.43, for a total transaction of $468,005.22. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,232 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $815,853.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 16,414 shares of company stock worth $3,982,922 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 12.19% of the company’s stock.

Constellation Brands Stock Performance

NYSE STZ opened at $240.71 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. Constellation Brands, Inc. has a twelve month low of $227.50 and a twelve month high of $274.87. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $247.73 and a 200-day moving average price of $253.58. The firm has a market cap of $44.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.75.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 3rd. The company reported $3.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.46 by $0.11. Constellation Brands had a net margin of 22.70% and a return on equity of 23.72%. The business had revenue of $2.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.67 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.91 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Constellation Brands, Inc. will post 13.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Constellation Brands Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 23rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 14th were issued a dividend of $1.01 per share. This represents a $4.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.68%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 14th. Constellation Brands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.10%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

STZ has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Constellation Brands from $310.00 to $311.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 5th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Constellation Brands from $305.00 to $280.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 26th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $308.00 price objective on shares of Constellation Brands in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Constellation Brands from $291.00 to $320.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 5th. Finally, Roth Mkm cut their price target on Constellation Brands from $305.00 to $303.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 5th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $299.21.

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.