Board of the Pension Protection Fund Invests $751,000 in Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ)

Board of the Pension Protection Fund purchased a new stake in Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 3,400 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $751,000.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Oak Thistle LLC bought a new stake in shares of Constellation Brands in the fourth quarter worth about $692,000. Define Financial LLC purchased a new position in Constellation Brands during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $476,000. Oak Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Constellation Brands by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Oak Asset Management LLC now owns 17,611 shares of the company's stock worth $3,892,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Tlwm raised its holdings in shares of Constellation Brands by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Tlwm now owns 3,319 shares of the company's stock worth $733,000 after acquiring an additional 114 shares in the last quarter. Finally, West Oak Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Constellation Brands by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 7,683 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,698,000 after acquiring an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.34% of the company's stock.

Constellation Brands Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of Constellation Brands stock traded down $1.38 on Wednesday, hitting $180.82. 2,964,146 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,237,172. 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 $32.83 billion, a PE ratio of 58.52, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.75. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $229.71 and its 200-day moving average price is $240.26. Constellation Brands, Inc. has a 52 week low of $176.51 and a 52 week high of $274.87.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 10th. The company reported $3.25 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $3.33 by ($0.08). Constellation Brands had a net margin of 5.29% and a return on equity of 25.34%. The firm had revenue of $2.46 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.53 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.19 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Constellation Brands, Inc. will post 13.57 EPS for the current year.

Constellation Brands Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be given a dividend of $1.01 per share. This represents a $4.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.23%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. Constellation Brands's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 108.60%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently weighed in on STZ. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on shares of Constellation Brands from $315.00 to $305.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Constellation Brands from $280.00 to $220.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Bank of America reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $255.00 price target (down previously from $300.00) on shares of Constellation Brands in a report on Monday, October 7th. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on Constellation Brands from $300.00 to $250.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Finally, Roth Mkm reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $298.00 price objective on shares of Constellation Brands in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $261.40.

Insider Transactions at Constellation Brands

In other Constellation Brands news, major shareholder Wildstar Partners Llc sold 660 shares of Constellation Brands stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.00, for a total value of $159,060.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 1,736,884 shares in the company, valued at $418,589,044. The trade was a 0.04 % 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, EVP James A. Jr. Sabia sold 36,086 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,042 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,898,045.58. The trade was a 69.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 69,172 shares of company stock valued at $16,778,841. Company insiders own 12.19% of the company's stock.

Constellation Brands 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.