First National Trust Co Cuts Stake in Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ)

First National Trust Co cut its stake in Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ) by 0.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 26,233 shares of the company’s stock after selling 98 shares during the quarter. First National Trust Co’s holdings in Constellation Brands were worth $6,760,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Constellation Brands in the second quarter valued at about $119,394,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Constellation Brands by 3.5% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,705,793 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,724,686,000 after acquiring an additional 462,891 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Sarl lifted its stake in Constellation Brands by 35.9% in the 1st quarter. Capital International Sarl now owns 10,462 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,843,000 after purchasing an additional 2,764 shares in the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Constellation Brands by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 503,058 shares of the company’s stock worth $136,711,000 after purchasing an additional 5,302 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its position in shares of Constellation Brands by 14.3% in the first quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 58,814 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,986,000 after purchasing an additional 7,343 shares in the last quarter. 77.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on STZ. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Constellation Brands from $307.00 to $293.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 4th. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Constellation Brands from $320.00 to $295.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Constellation Brands from $309.00 to $300.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Constellation Brands from $305.00 to $280.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on Constellation Brands from $315.00 to $305.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $290.47.

Constellation Brands Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:STZ opened at $236.34 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $244.78 and a 200-day simple moving average of $248.51. Constellation Brands, Inc. has a twelve month low of $224.76 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 company has a market capitalization of $42.91 billion, a PE ratio of 76.49, a P/E/G ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 1.75.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 3rd. The company reported $4.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.08 by $0.24. The firm had revenue of $2.92 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.95 billion. Constellation Brands had a return on equity of 25.34% and a net margin of 5.29%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.70 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Constellation Brands, Inc. will post 13.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Constellation Brands Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 21st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 5th will be paid a dividend of $1.01 per share. This represents a $4.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.71%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 5th. Constellation Brands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 130.74%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Robert Sands sold 119,274 shares of the business’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 transaction, the director now directly owns 431,729 shares in the company, valued at $104,638,157.73. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, Director Robert Sands sold 119,274 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $242.37, for a total transaction of $28,908,439.38. Following the transaction, the director now owns 431,729 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $104,638,157.73. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Samuel J. Glaetzer sold 1,510 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $245.57, for a total value of $370,810.70. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 4,970 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,220,482.90. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 128,210 shares of company stock valued at $31,040,994 over the last three months. 12.19% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.