Constellation Brands’ (STZ) “Outperform” Rating Reiterated at Royal Bank of Canada

Royal Bank of Canada restated their outperform rating on shares of Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) in a research report report published on Monday,Benzinga reports. Royal Bank of Canada currently has a $293.00 price target on the stock.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on STZ. Evercore ISI dropped their target price on shares of Constellation Brands from $300.00 to $250.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. Piper Sandler cut shares of Constellation Brands from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $245.00 to $200.00 in a research report on Monday. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Constellation Brands from $280.00 to $220.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. Argus lowered shares of Constellation Brands from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price target on Constellation Brands from $265.00 to $223.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Constellation Brands presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $254.29.

Constellation Brands Stock Performance

Shares of STZ stock opened at $172.79 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $31.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.45, a PEG ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 1.75. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $212.85 and a 200 day moving average of $232.73. Constellation Brands has a 52 week low of $166.02 and a 52 week high of $274.87. The company has a quick ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) last posted its 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 return on equity of 26.55% and a net margin of 6.27%. The company had revenue of $2.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.53 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.19 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Constellation Brands will post 13.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Constellation Brands Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be paid a dividend of $1.01 per share. This represents a $4.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.34%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 7th. Constellation Brands’s dividend payout ratio is currently 108.60%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP James A. Jr. Sabia sold 36,086 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $242.99, for a total value of $8,768,537.14. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,042 shares in the company, valued at $3,898,045.58. This trade represents a 69.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director William T. Giles acquired 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 17th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $186.39 per share, with a total value of $186,390.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 1,463 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $272,688.57. This trade represents a 215.98 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 61,746 shares of company stock valued at $15,017,097 in the last 90 days. 12.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Constellation Brands

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in STZ. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA purchased a new position in Constellation Brands during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA bought a new position in shares of Constellation Brands in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Eastern Bank purchased a new position in shares of Constellation Brands during the 3rd quarter valued at about $39,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 142 shares during the period. Finally, Centricity Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Constellation Brands in the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. Institutional investors own 77.34% 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 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.