Oak Ridge Investments LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ)

Oak Ridge Investments LLC cut its holdings in Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ) by 9.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 23,027 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,336 shares during the quarter. Oak Ridge Investments LLC’s holdings in Constellation Brands were worth $5,089,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in shares of Constellation Brands by 887.5% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 158 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Eastern Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Constellation Brands during the third quarter worth approximately $39,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Constellation Brands in the 3rd quarter valued at $42,000. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new position in Constellation Brands in the 3rd quarter valued at $60,000. Finally, Continuum Advisory LLC boosted its stake in Constellation Brands by 68.0% during the 3rd quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 252 shares of the company’s stock worth $61,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. 77.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Constellation Brands Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE STZ opened at $184.05 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $226.75 and a 200-day simple moving average of $238.96. Constellation Brands, Inc. has a twelve month low of $176.51 and a twelve month high of $274.87. The company has a current ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.42 billion, a PE ratio of 49.48, a PEG ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.91.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 10th. The company reported $3.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.33 by ($0.08). Constellation Brands had a return on equity of 25.34% and a net margin of 5.29%. The business had revenue of $2.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.53 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.19 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Constellation Brands, Inc. will post 13.72 earnings per share for the current year.

Constellation Brands Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be given a $1.01 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $4.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.20%. Constellation Brands’s dividend payout ratio is presently 108.60%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on STZ shares. Roth Capital lowered their price target on shares of Constellation Brands from $298.00 to $284.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and set a $201.00 target price (down from $310.00) on shares of Constellation Brands in a report on Monday, January 13th. Evercore ISI cut their price target on Constellation Brands from $300.00 to $250.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 13th. Roth Mkm reissued a “buy” rating and set a $298.00 price objective on shares of Constellation Brands in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Constellation Brands from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $259.05.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO William A. Newlands sold 7,426 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 7,274 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,725,683.76. This represents a 50.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Wildstar Partners Llc sold 660 shares of Constellation Brands stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.00, for a total value of $159,060.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 1,736,884 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $418,589,044. This trade represents a 0.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 69,172 shares of company stock worth $16,778,841 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 12.19% of the company’s stock.

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.