California Public Employees Retirement System Grows Stock Holdings in Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ)

California Public Employees Retirement System raised its stake in Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ) by 2.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 730,568 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 14,481 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System owned about 0.40% of Constellation Brands worth $176,615,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Constellation Brands by 17.2% during the 3rd quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 17,218 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,327,000 after acquiring an additional 2,526 shares in the last quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS boosted its holdings in Constellation Brands by 15.3% during the third quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 32,433 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,151,000 after buying an additional 4,311 shares in the last quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Constellation Brands by 46.0% during the fourth quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,012 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,453,000 after buying an additional 1,893 shares in the last quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Constellation Brands by 35.8% during the fourth quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 2,002 shares of the company’s stock worth $484,000 after buying an additional 528 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ascent Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Constellation Brands during the fourth quarter worth $962,000. 77.34% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Constellation Brands Price Performance

NYSE:STZ traded down $0.32 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $259.42. 160,539 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,257,410. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $258.44 and a 200 day moving average price of $247.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $47.43 billion, a PE ratio of 27.68, a PEG ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 0.97. Constellation Brands, Inc. has a 1-year low of $221.81 and a 1-year high of $274.87. The company has a current ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 11th. The company reported $2.26 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.10 by $0.16. Constellation Brands had a return on equity of 23.06% and a net margin of 16.13%. The firm had revenue of $2.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.09 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.98 EPS. Constellation Brands’s revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Constellation Brands, Inc. will post 13.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Constellation Brands Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 3rd will be given a $1.01 dividend. This represents a $4.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.56%. This is a boost from Constellation Brands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.89. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 2nd. Constellation Brands’s dividend payout ratio is 37.95%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $300.00 price target on shares of Constellation Brands in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Constellation Brands from $312.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Constellation Brands from $290.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. HSBC increased their target price on shares of Constellation Brands from $290.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of Constellation Brands from $300.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $298.55.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Constellation Brands news, EVP James A. Jr. Sabia sold 15,781 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 $5,512,503.30. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 16.19% of the company’s stock.

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 Premier, Corona Familiar, Corona Light, Corona Refresca, Corona Hard Seltzer, Modelo Especial, Modelo Negra, Modelo Chelada, Victoria, Vicky Chamoy, and Pacifico brands.