Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ) Holdings Decreased by Prudential Financial Inc.

Prudential Financial Inc. lessened its stake in Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ) by 19.0% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 86,509 shares of the company’s stock after selling 20,328 shares during the quarter. Prudential Financial Inc.’s holdings in Constellation Brands were worth $19,118,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of STZ. Mainstream Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Constellation Brands in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Constellation Brands during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA bought a new stake in Constellation Brands during the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA acquired a new stake in Constellation Brands in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in Constellation Brands by 887.5% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 158 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.34% of the company’s stock.

Constellation Brands Stock Performance

Shares of STZ opened at $184.05 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $33.26 billion, a PE ratio of 49.48, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a current ratio of 1.10. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $177.20 and its 200 day moving average price is $215.67. Constellation Brands, Inc. has a 52 week low of $160.46 and a 52 week high of $274.87.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 10th. The company reported $3.25 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.33 by ($0.08). Constellation Brands had a net margin of 6.27% and a return on equity of 26.55%. The company had revenue of $2.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.53 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.19 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Constellation Brands, Inc. will post 13.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Constellation Brands Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were paid a $1.01 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $4.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.20%. Constellation Brands’s payout ratio is 108.60%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Constellation Brands news, Director William T. Giles bought 1,000 shares of Constellation Brands stock in a transaction on Friday, January 17th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $186.39 per share, for a total transaction of $186,390.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 1,463 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $272,688.57. The trade was a 215.98 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 12.19% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $201.00 price objective (down previously from $310.00) on shares of Constellation Brands in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Barclays lowered their target price on Constellation Brands from $214.00 to $205.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on shares of Constellation Brands from $293.00 to $289.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 7th. Citigroup cut shares of Constellation Brands from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $260.00 to $200.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered shares of Constellation Brands from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and cut their target price for the company from $220.00 to $202.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $250.41.

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.