Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ) Short Interest Update

Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ - Get Free Report) saw a large increase in short interest in November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 3,440,000 shares, an increase of 62.3% from the October 31st total of 2,120,000 shares. Approximately 2.3% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,300,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.6 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

STZ has been the topic of several recent research reports. BNP Paribas began coverage on Constellation Brands in a research report on Monday. They set a "neutral" rating and a $261.00 price target on the stock. Bank of America reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $255.00 target price (down from $300.00) on shares of Constellation Brands in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on shares of Constellation Brands from $310.00 to $300.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 4th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Constellation Brands from $320.00 to $295.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Constellation Brands from $305.00 to $280.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 26th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Constellation Brands has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $289.16.

Insider Activity at Constellation Brands

In other Constellation Brands news, Director Robert Sands sold 119,274 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $242.37, for a total transaction of $28,908,439.38. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 431,729 shares in the company, valued at $104,638,157.73. This represents a 21.65 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO William A. Newlands sold 7,426 shares of Constellation Brands stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $237.24, for a total value of $1,761,744.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 7,274 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,725,683.76. This represents a 50.52 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 189,956 shares of company stock valued at $46,058,091. Corporate insiders own 12.19% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Constellation Brands

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its stake in Constellation Brands by 260.7% during the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 20,495 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,281,000 after buying an additional 14,813 shares during the last quarter. Arvest Bank Trust Division bought a new position in shares of Constellation Brands during the third quarter valued at $243,000. World Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Constellation Brands by 36.6% in the 3rd quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,550 shares of the company's stock worth $657,000 after purchasing an additional 683 shares during the last quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Constellation Brands by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,239 shares of the company's stock worth $1,092,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rehmann Capital Advisory Group bought a new position in shares of Constellation Brands in the third quarter worth approximately $928,000. 77.34% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Constellation Brands Stock Up 2.1 %

Shares of NYSE STZ traded up $4.88 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $240.85. 833,709 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,206,769. The company has a market cap of $43.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 77.94, a PEG ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 1.75. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $241.72 and a 200-day moving average price of $246.80. Constellation Brands has a 52 week low of $224.76 and a 52 week 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.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 3rd. The company reported $4.32 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.08 by $0.24. The firm had revenue of $2.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.95 billion. Constellation Brands had a net margin of 5.29% and a return on equity of 25.34%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.70 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Constellation Brands will post 13.57 EPS for the current year.

Constellation Brands Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 21st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 5th were paid a dividend of $1.01 per share. This represents a $4.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.68%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 5th. Constellation Brands's dividend payout ratio is 130.74%.

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.