AssuredPartners Investment Advisors LLC Invests $475,000 in Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ)

AssuredPartners Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 2,148 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $475,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of STZ. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its stake in shares of Constellation Brands by 1,844.7% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 924,274 shares of the company's stock valued at $204,265,000 after acquiring an additional 876,745 shares during the last quarter. Copperleaf Capital LLC bought a new stake in Constellation Brands in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $343,000. Grimes & Company Inc. acquired a new stake in Constellation Brands in the fourth quarter worth $6,099,000. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its position in shares of Constellation Brands by 62.8% during the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 16,575 shares of the company's stock worth $3,663,000 after purchasing an additional 6,391 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Southern Style Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Constellation Brands in the 4th quarter valued at $3,074,000. Institutional investors own 77.34% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Constellation Brands

In related news, Director William T. Giles acquired 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 17th. The shares were bought 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 of the company's stock, valued at $272,688.57. This trade represents a 215.98 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 12.19% of the company's stock.

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Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently commented on STZ. Citigroup downgraded Constellation Brands from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $260.00 to $200.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "hold" rating and set a $201.00 price target (down previously from $310.00) on shares of Constellation Brands in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Morgan Stanley lowered Constellation Brands from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $220.00 to $202.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Argus downgraded shares of Constellation Brands from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Constellation Brands from $205.00 to $203.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $249.18.

Constellation Brands Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:STZ traded up $0.48 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $184.22. The stock had a trading volume of 832,618 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,811,704. The company has a market cap of $33.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.52, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.75. Constellation Brands, Inc. has a 12 month low of $160.46 and a 12 month high of $274.87. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $177.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $214.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ - Get Free Report) last announced 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). The firm had revenue of $2.46 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.53 billion. Constellation Brands had a net margin of 6.27% and a return on equity of 26.55%. The business's revenue was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.19 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Constellation Brands, Inc. will post 13.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Constellation Brands Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were paid a $1.01 dividend. This represents a $4.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. Constellation Brands's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 108.60%.

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.