Empirical Asset Management LLC Buys New Position in Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ)

Empirical Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 39,786 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,793,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of STZ. Eastern Bank acquired a new stake in Constellation Brands during the third quarter worth approximately $39,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in shares of Constellation Brands by 887.5% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 158 shares of the company's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Constellation Brands in the third quarter worth $42,000. Truvestments Capital LLC acquired a new position in Constellation Brands in the third quarter valued at about $60,000. Finally, Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new stake in Constellation Brands during the third quarter worth about $62,000. Institutional investors own 77.34% of the company's stock.

Constellation Brands Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of STZ stock traded down $0.52 on Friday, hitting $184.05. The company had a trading volume of 2,839,837 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,211,230. Constellation Brands, Inc. has a twelve month low of $176.51 and a twelve month high of $274.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 1.25. The firm has a market cap of $33.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.48, a P/E/G ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.91. The stock's 50-day moving average is $227.76 and its two-hundred day moving average is $239.46.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ - Get Free Report) last released 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). The firm had revenue of $2.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.53 billion. Constellation Brands had a net margin of 5.29% and a return on equity of 25.34%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.19 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Constellation Brands, Inc. will post 13.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Constellation Brands Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be given a dividend of $1.01 per share. This represents a $4.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.20%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 7th. Constellation Brands's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 108.60%.

Insider Activity at Constellation Brands

In other news, CEO William A. Newlands sold 25,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $243.58, for a total transaction of $6,089,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 7,274 shares in the company, valued at $1,771,800.92. The trade was a 77.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Wildstar Partners Llc sold 660 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.00, for a total value of $159,060.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 1,736,884 shares in the company, valued at approximately $418,589,044. This represents a 0.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 69,172 shares of company stock worth $16,778,841 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 12.19% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on STZ. UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of Constellation Brands from $265.00 to $223.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "hold" rating and set a $201.00 price objective (down from $310.00) on shares of Constellation Brands in a research report on Monday. Argus downgraded Constellation Brands from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday. Roth Capital lowered their price target on Constellation Brands from $298.00 to $284.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on Constellation Brands from $315.00 to $305.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Constellation Brands has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $259.05.

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.