Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ) Shares Sold by Liberty Capital Management Inc.

Liberty Capital Management Inc. reduced its position in shares of Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ) by 1.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 22,173 shares of the company’s stock after selling 415 shares during the period. Constellation Brands comprises approximately 1.5% of Liberty Capital Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 19th largest holding. Liberty Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Constellation Brands were worth $6,026,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Rafferty Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Constellation Brands by 11.6% during the 3rd quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 12,016 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,020,000 after buying an additional 1,253 shares during the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Constellation Brands in the third quarter valued at approximately $758,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Constellation Brands by 28.0% during the third quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 233,654 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,724,000 after purchasing an additional 51,041 shares during the last quarter. CI Investments Inc. raised its position in shares of Constellation Brands by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter. CI Investments Inc. now owns 1,906 shares of the company’s stock worth $479,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares during the period. Finally, Bison Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Constellation Brands in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $233,000. 77.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP James A. Jr. Sabia sold 15,781 shares of Constellation Brands stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $263.63, for a total value of $4,160,345.03. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 20,910 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,512,503.30. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, CEO William A. Newlands sold 4,013 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, April 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $263.25, for a total value of $1,056,422.25. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 5,395 shares in the company, valued at $1,420,233.75. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP James A. Jr. Sabia sold 15,781 shares of Constellation Brands stock in a transaction on Friday, April 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $263.63, for a total value of $4,160,345.03. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 20,910 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,512,503.30. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 48,031 shares of company stock valued at $12,582,321 over the last three months. Insiders own 12.19% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on STZ. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $300.00 target price on shares of Constellation Brands in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on shares of Constellation Brands from $256.00 to $262.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Constellation Brands from $290.00 to $315.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Constellation Brands from $296.00 to $291.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Roth Mkm restated a “buy” rating and issued a $305.00 target price on shares of Constellation Brands in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $298.37.

Constellation Brands Price Performance

NYSE STZ traded up $0.67 on Friday, reaching $263.50. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,387,126 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,090,900. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $255.18 and its two-hundred day moving average is $252.70. The stock has a market cap of $48.22 billion, a PE ratio of 28.09, a PEG ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 1.19. Constellation Brands, Inc. has a twelve month low of $227.50 and a twelve month high of $274.87.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 11th. The company reported $2.26 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.10 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $2.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.09 billion. Constellation Brands had a net margin of 16.13% and a return on equity of 23.06%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.98 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Constellation Brands, Inc. will post 13.66 EPS for the current year.

Constellation Brands Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 17th. Investors of record on Friday, May 3rd were issued a $1.01 dividend. This represents a $4.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.53%. This is a boost from Constellation Brands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.89. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 2nd. Constellation Brands’s payout ratio is presently 43.07%.

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.