Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) Stock Rating Upgraded by StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ – Get Rating) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Monday.

Several other research analysts also recently commented on STZ. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Constellation Brands from $299.00 to $294.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 4th. TheStreet raised Constellation Brands from a c+ rating to a b- rating in a report on Thursday, April 28th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Constellation Brands from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Wednesday, June 8th. Credit Suisse Group raised their price target on Constellation Brands from $278.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Friday, April 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Constellation Brands from $278.00 to $276.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 4th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Constellation Brands has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $269.27.

Shares of NYSE STZ opened at $239.35 on Monday. Constellation Brands has a 52 week low of $207.35 and a 52 week high of $261.52. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $243.82 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $237.51. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The company has a market cap of $45.05 billion, a P/E ratio of -1,329.72, a P/E/G ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.06.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ – Get Rating) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 7th. The company reported $2.37 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.15 by $0.22. Constellation Brands had a positive return on equity of 16.43% and a negative net margin of 0.42%. The business had revenue of $2.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.02 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.82 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Constellation Brands will post 11.13 EPS for the current year.

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 19th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 5th were given a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.34%. This is a positive change from Constellation Brands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.14. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 4th. Constellation Brands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -516.67%.

In other news, CEO William A. Newlands sold 3,787 shares of Constellation Brands stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $254.00, for a total value of $961,898.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 14,798 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,758,692. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Jeremy S. G. Fowden sold 7,574 shares of Constellation Brands stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $240.38, for a total value of $1,820,638.12. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 18,501 shares in the company, valued at $4,447,270.38. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 25,822 shares of company stock worth $6,451,256. 16.19% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of STZ. Capital World Investors grew its position in shares of Constellation Brands by 28.7% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 8,810,424 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,211,152,000 after buying an additional 1,967,115 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Constellation Brands during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $371,552,000. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its position in shares of Constellation Brands by 48.6% during the fourth quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 2,885,267 shares of the company’s stock valued at $724,116,000 after purchasing an additional 943,872 shares in the last quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Constellation Brands by 53.3% during the first quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC now owns 1,428,539 shares of the company’s stock valued at $329,065,000 after purchasing an additional 496,542 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Scharf Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Constellation Brands during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $87,917,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.99% of the company’s stock.

About Constellation Brands (Get Rating)

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. It provides beer primarily under the Corona Extra, Corona Premier, Corona Familiar, Corona Light, Corona Refresca, Corona Hard Seltzer, Modelo Especial, Modelo Negra, Modelo Chelada, Pacifico, and Victoria brands.

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