Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ) Shares Purchased by Washington Trust Bank

Washington Trust Bank raised its stake in Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ) by 15.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 45,396 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,158 shares during the period. Washington Trust Bank’s holdings in Constellation Brands were worth $10,255,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in shares of Constellation Brands by 100.8% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 7,890,702 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,782,432,000 after buying an additional 3,961,836 shares during the period. Atom Investors LP grew its holdings in Constellation Brands by 28.3% during the 1st quarter. Atom Investors LP now owns 1,782 shares of the company’s stock worth $403,000 after acquiring an additional 393 shares in the last quarter. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Constellation Brands by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,661 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,053,000 after purchasing an additional 207 shares during the last quarter. Intact Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Constellation Brands by 12.5% in the 1st quarter. Intact Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,700 shares of the company’s stock valued at $610,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ossiam lifted its position in shares of Constellation Brands by 3,237.7% during the 1st quarter. Ossiam now owns 31,775 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,178,000 after purchasing an additional 30,823 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.99% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

STZ has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. HSBC increased their target price on Constellation Brands from $275.00 to $280.00 in a report on Wednesday, June 7th. TD Cowen upgraded Constellation Brands from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $240.00 to $300.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 6th. Barclays lowered their price target on Constellation Brands from $277.00 to $275.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 5th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of Constellation Brands from $293.00 to $300.00 in a report on Tuesday, June 27th. Finally, StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Constellation Brands in a research report on Thursday, August 17th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $270.05.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Robert Lee Hanson sold 12,299 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $268.10, for a total transaction of $3,297,361.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 11,862 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,180,202.20. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Constellation Brands news, CFO Garth Hankinson sold 1,550 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $267.96, for a total value of $415,338.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 9,491 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,543,208.36. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Robert Lee Hanson sold 12,299 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $268.10, for a total transaction of $3,297,361.90. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 11,862 shares in the company, valued at $3,180,202.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 100,819 shares of company stock valued at $27,054,755 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 16.19% of the company’s stock.

Constellation Brands Stock Performance

Shares of STZ stock opened at $258.51 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $261.84 and its 200 day moving average price is $240.94. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $47.39 billion, a PE ratio of -141.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 1.75. Constellation Brands, Inc. has a 52-week low of $208.12 and a 52-week high of $273.65.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) last announced its earnings results on Friday, June 30th. The company reported $2.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.83 by $0.08. Constellation Brands had a positive return on equity of 22.32% and a negative net margin of 3.14%. The company had revenue of $2.51 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.47 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.66 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Constellation Brands, Inc. will post 11.62 EPS for the current year.

Constellation Brands Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 10th were paid a $0.89 dividend. This represents a $3.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 9th. Constellation Brands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -194.54%.

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.