National Pension Service Has $75.75 Million Holdings in Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ)

National Pension Service increased its position in shares of Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ) by 2.4% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 313,320 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,261 shares during the quarter. National Pension Service’s holdings in Constellation Brands were worth $75,745,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Darsana Capital Partners LP grew its position in Constellation Brands by 288.9% in the third quarter. Darsana Capital Partners LP now owns 875,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $219,914,000 after acquiring an additional 650,000 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Constellation Brands by 24,922.5% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 567,010 shares of the company’s stock valued at $137,075,000 after buying an additional 564,744 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Constellation Brands by 38.3% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,403,495 shares of the company’s stock worth $335,402,000 after purchasing an additional 388,390 shares during the last quarter. Phoenix Holdings Ltd. raised its stake in Constellation Brands by 38.3% during the third quarter. Phoenix Holdings Ltd. now owns 551,447 shares of the company’s stock worth $138,608,000 after buying an additional 152,799 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Trexquant Investment LP acquired a new position in shares of Constellation Brands in the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,640,000. 77.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Constellation Brands Price Performance

Shares of Constellation Brands stock traded up $2.67 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $261.03. The stock had a trading volume of 163,020 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,204,223. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $261.27 and its 200 day moving average is $249.24. 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, Inc. has a twelve month low of $223.01 and a twelve month high of $274.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $47.76 billion, a PE ratio of 27.54, a PEG ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.75.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) last released 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. The company had revenue of $2.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.09 billion. Constellation Brands had a return on equity of 23.06% and a net margin of 16.13%. Constellation Brands’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.98 EPS. Equities 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 3rd will be issued a dividend of $1.01 per share. This represents a $4.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.55%. This is an increase 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 (DPR) is presently 43.07%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP James A. Jr. Sabia sold 15,781 shares of the 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 20,910 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,512,503.30. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Michael Mcgrew sold 3,237 shares of Constellation Brands stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.50, for a total transaction of $827,053.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 1,731 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $442,270.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP James A. Jr. Sabia sold 15,781 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $263.63, for a total transaction of $4,160,345.03. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 20,910 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,512,503.30. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 23,031 shares of company stock worth $6,043,821 over the last 90 days. 16.19% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on STZ. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on Constellation Brands from $256.00 to $262.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Constellation Brands from $292.00 to $314.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Constellation Brands from $290.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 18th. HSBC raised their target price on Constellation Brands from $290.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Finally, Argus upgraded shares of Constellation Brands from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $306.00 target price for the company in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Constellation Brands presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $298.55.

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.