Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ) Shares Sold by Tocqueville Asset Management L.P.

Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. lowered its position in shares of Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ) by 33.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 48,946 shares of the company’s stock after selling 24,211 shares during the quarter. Tocqueville Asset Management L.P.’s holdings in Constellation Brands were worth $10,817,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp lifted its position in Constellation Brands by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,144,428 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,841,048,000 after acquiring an additional 402,211 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its position in Constellation Brands by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,853,081 shares of the company’s stock worth $477,515,000 after acquiring an additional 21,454 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Constellation Brands by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,782,964 shares of the company’s stock worth $394,035,000 after acquiring an additional 38,786 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its position in Constellation Brands by 1,844.7% during the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 924,274 shares of the company’s stock worth $204,265,000 after acquiring an additional 876,745 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Constellation Brands during the 4th quarter worth about $105,766,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.34% of the company’s stock.

Constellation Brands Price Performance

NYSE:STZ opened at $183.53 on Tuesday. Constellation Brands, Inc. has a 12 month low of $160.46 and a 12 month high of $274.87. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $179.79 and a two-hundred day moving average of $218.70. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The firm has a market cap of $33.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.75.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $2.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.53 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.19 earnings per share. Constellation Brands’s quarterly revenue was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Constellation Brands, Inc. will post 13.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Constellation Brands Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th were paid a dividend of $1.01 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $4.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.20%. Constellation Brands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 108.60%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on STZ. Piper Sandler cut Constellation Brands from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $245.00 to $200.00 in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Truist Financial decreased their price objective on Constellation Brands from $255.00 to $190.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Constellation Brands from $295.00 to $275.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. StockNews.com cut Constellation Brands from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Argus cut Constellation Brands from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Constellation Brands currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $252.81.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director William T. Giles purchased 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 17th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $186.39 per share, for a total transaction of $186,390.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,463 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $272,688.57. This trade represents a 215.98 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 12.19% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Constellation Brands

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.