Optimize Financial Inc Acquires New Stake in Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ)

Optimize Financial Inc bought a new position in Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 1,903 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $421,000.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Constellation Brands by 13.3% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 15,534,787 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,433,188,000 after buying an additional 1,821,969 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Constellation Brands by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,204,003 shares of the company's stock worth $705,844,000 after purchasing an additional 63,323 shares in the last quarter. Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC raised its stake in shares of Constellation Brands by 42.9% in the fourth quarter. Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC now owns 2,454,258 shares of the company's stock worth $542,391,000 after purchasing an additional 736,780 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Constellation Brands by 13.2% in the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 2,176,095 shares of the company's stock worth $482,919,000 after purchasing an additional 253,445 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in Constellation Brands in the 4th quarter worth about $445,883,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.34% of the company's stock.

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Insider Buying and Selling at Constellation Brands

In other news, Director William T. Giles purchased 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 17th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $186.39 per share, with a total value of $186,390.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 1,463 shares in the company, valued at approximately $272,688.57. This trade represents 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 available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 12.19% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

STZ has been the subject of several research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Constellation Brands from $203.00 to $194.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday. Citigroup cut their price objective on Constellation Brands from $200.00 to $190.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Constellation Brands from $230.00 to $210.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Argus cut shares of Constellation Brands from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, UBS Group lowered 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, January 17th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $228.50.

Constellation Brands Price Performance

STZ traded up $0.39 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $187.66. The company's stock had a trading volume of 104,727 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,688,463. The stock has a market cap of $33.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.22, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.75. The business's 50-day moving average price is $177.15 and its 200-day moving average price is $208.21. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 0.46 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.

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

Constellation Brands Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 29th will be paid a dividend of $1.02 per share. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.17%. This is a positive change from Constellation Brands's previous quarterly dividend of $1.01. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 29th. Constellation Brands's payout ratio is presently -792.16%.

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.