Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc. Decreases Stock Holdings in Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ)

Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ - Free Report) by 14.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 79,270 shares of the company's stock after selling 13,890 shares during the quarter. Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc.'s holdings in Constellation Brands were worth $17,519,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its stake in Constellation Brands by 1,844.7% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 924,274 shares of the company's stock worth $204,265,000 after acquiring an additional 876,745 shares during the last quarter. Copperleaf Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Constellation Brands in the 4th quarter valued at $343,000. Grimes & Company Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Constellation Brands during the 4th quarter worth $6,099,000. Empowered Funds LLC grew its stake 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. purchased a new position in Constellation Brands in the fourth quarter valued at $3,074,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.34% of the company's stock.

Constellation Brands Stock Performance

NYSE:STZ traded down $2.14 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $185.36. The stock had a trading volume of 1,054,280 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,707,774. The stock has a market cap of $33.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.83, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.75. 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 12-month low of $160.46 and a 12-month high of $265.70. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $180.56 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $205.23.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 9th. The company reported $2.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.28 by $0.35. The business had revenue of $2.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.14 billion. Constellation Brands had a net margin of 6.27% and a return on equity of 26.55%. The business's revenue was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.26 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Constellation Brands, Inc. will post 13.5 EPS for the current year.

Constellation Brands Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 29th will be paid a $1.02 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 29th. This is an increase from Constellation Brands's previous quarterly dividend of $1.01. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.20%. Constellation Brands's payout ratio is -800.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on STZ. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Constellation Brands from $230.00 to $210.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Constellation Brands from $200.00 to $190.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on shares of Constellation Brands from $260.00 to $215.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Needham & Company LLC restated a "buy" rating and issued a $215.00 target price on shares of Constellation Brands in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "hold" rating and set a $201.00 price target (down from $310.00) on shares of Constellation Brands in a research note on Monday, January 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $224.42.

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.