Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ) Shares Sold by Ossiam

Ossiam lowered its stake in shares of Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ - Free Report) by 12.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 14,816 shares of the company's stock after selling 2,184 shares during the period. Ossiam's holdings in Constellation Brands were worth $3,274,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in STZ. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its holdings 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 valued at $204,265,000 after acquiring an additional 876,745 shares during the last quarter. Copperleaf Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Constellation Brands in the 4th quarter valued at about $343,000. Grimes & Company Inc. acquired a new stake in Constellation Brands during the 4th quarter worth approximately $6,099,000. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in Constellation Brands by 62.8% in the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 16,575 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,663,000 after buying an additional 6,391 shares during the period. Finally, Southern Style Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Constellation Brands during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,074,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.34% of the company's stock.

Constellation Brands Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE STZ traded down $2.35 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $185.15. The company had a trading volume of 470,509 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,701,813. Constellation Brands, Inc. has a 12 month low of $160.46 and a 12 month high of $265.70. The stock has a market cap of $33.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 49.83, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 0.46. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $180.56 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $205.23.

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

Constellation Brands Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 29th will be issued a $1.02 dividend. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.20%. 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 dividend payout ratio is -800.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on STZ shares. TD Cowen decreased their price target on shares of Constellation Brands from $270.00 to $260.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Roth Capital dropped their target price on Constellation Brands from $298.00 to $284.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 17th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Constellation Brands from $230.00 to $210.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on shares of Constellation Brands from $300.00 to $250.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on shares of Constellation Brands from $203.00 to $207.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, April 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $224.42.

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.