Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ) Shares Bought by Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co

Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co lifted its stake in shares of Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ) by 14.0% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 16,494 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,020 shares during the period. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co’s holdings in Constellation Brands were worth $3,645,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its holdings in Constellation Brands by 1,844.7% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 924,274 shares of the company’s stock worth $204,265,000 after buying an additional 876,745 shares in the last quarter. Copperleaf Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Constellation Brands during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $343,000. Grimes & Company Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Constellation Brands during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $6,099,000. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in shares of Constellation Brands by 62.8% during the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 16,575 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,663,000 after acquiring an additional 6,391 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Southern Style Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Constellation Brands in the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,074,000. 77.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Constellation Brands

In other Constellation Brands news, Director William T. Giles purchased 1,000 shares of Constellation Brands stock in a transaction on Friday, January 17th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $186.39 per share, with a total value of $186,390.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,463 shares in the company, valued at approximately $272,688.57. This represents a 215.98 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 12.19% of the company’s stock.

Constellation Brands Price Performance

Constellation Brands stock opened at $183.69 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a current ratio of 1.10. The company has a market cap of $33.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 49.38, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.75. Constellation Brands, Inc. has a 1 year low of $160.46 and a 1 year high of $274.87. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $177.19 and a 200 day moving average price of $214.99.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 10th. The company reported $3.25 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.33 by ($0.08). Constellation Brands had a return on equity of 26.55% and a net margin of 6.27%. The firm had revenue of $2.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.53 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.19 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Constellation Brands, Inc. will post 13.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Constellation Brands Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th were paid a $1.01 dividend. This represents a $4.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.20%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. Constellation Brands’s dividend payout ratio is currently 108.60%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have commented on STZ shares. Argus downgraded Constellation Brands from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Constellation Brands from $295.00 to $275.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and set a $201.00 target price (down from $310.00) on shares of Constellation Brands in a report on Monday, January 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $203.00 price target (down previously from $262.00) on shares of Constellation Brands in a report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Piper Sandler cut shares of Constellation Brands from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $245.00 to $200.00 in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $249.18.

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.