LifePlan Financial LLC Boosts Stock Position in Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ)

LifePlan Financial LLC grew its stake in Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ - Free Report) by 152.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,958 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 1,786 shares during the period. LifePlan Financial LLC's holdings in Constellation Brands were worth $654,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in STZ. Paloma Partners Management Co boosted its stake in shares of Constellation Brands by 568.4% in the 3rd quarter. Paloma Partners Management Co now owns 30,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,731,000 after purchasing an additional 25,512 shares in the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in Constellation Brands by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 84,204 shares of the company's stock worth $21,699,000 after acquiring an additional 2,980 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in shares of Constellation Brands by 318.8% in the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 10,184 shares of the company's stock worth $2,624,000 after buying an additional 7,752 shares during the period. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Constellation Brands by 29.5% during the third quarter. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC now owns 30,160 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,772,000 after acquiring an additional 6,867 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Constellation Brands during the 3rd quarter valued at about $2,132,000. Institutional investors own 77.34% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Barclays reduced their target price on Constellation Brands from $282.00 to $214.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on shares of Constellation Brands in a report on Monday, November 25th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $261.00 price objective for the company. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Constellation Brands from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday. UBS Group cut their price objective on Constellation Brands from $265.00 to $223.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $308.00 target price on shares of Constellation Brands in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $259.05.

Constellation Brands Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of Constellation Brands stock traded down $1.32 on Tuesday, reaching $182.99. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,934,236 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,169,718. The company has a market capitalization of $33.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 49.19, a P/E/G ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.91. 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, Inc. has a 52 week low of $176.51 and a 52 week high of $274.87. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $225.70 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $238.27.

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 return on equity of 26.55% and a net margin of 6.27%. The business had revenue of $2.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.53 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.19 EPS. Constellation Brands's quarterly revenue was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Constellation Brands, Inc. will post 13.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Constellation Brands Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be paid a dividend of $1.01 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $4.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.21%. Constellation Brands's dividend payout ratio is presently 108.60%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director William T. Giles acquired 1,000 shares of Constellation Brands stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 17th. The stock was bought at an average price of $186.39 per share, for a total transaction of $186,390.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 1,463 shares in the company, valued at $272,688.57. The trade was a 215.98 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Wildstar Partners Llc sold 660 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.00, for a total value of $159,060.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 1,736,884 shares of the company's stock, 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 valued at $16,778,841 in the last ninety days. 12.19% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.