Needham & Company LLC Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) Stock Price

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) had its target price dropped by Needham & Company LLC from $240.00 to $215.00 in a research note issued on Thursday. The firm presently has a “buy” rating on the stock. Needham & Company LLC’s target price would indicate a potential upside of 16.82% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other equities analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Constellation Brands from $295.00 to $275.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Barclays cut their target price on Constellation Brands from $214.00 to $205.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. Argus downgraded Constellation Brands from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and issued a $201.00 price objective (down from $310.00) on shares of Constellation Brands in a report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on Constellation Brands from $293.00 to $289.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Constellation Brands has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $249.27.

Constellation Brands Stock Performance

NYSE:STZ opened at $184.05 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 0.46. The firm has a market cap of $33.26 billion, a PE ratio of 49.48, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.90. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $177.20 and a 200-day simple moving average of $215.67. Constellation Brands has a 1-year low of $160.46 and a 1-year high of $274.87.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 10th. The company reported $3.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.33 by ($0.08). Constellation Brands had a return on equity of 26.55% and a net margin of 6.27%. The business had revenue of $2.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.53 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.19 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Constellation Brands will post 13.5 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Constellation Brands

In other news, Director William T. Giles bought 1,000 shares of Constellation Brands stock in a transaction on Friday, January 17th. The shares were bought at an average price of $186.39 per share, with a total value of $186,390.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 1,463 shares in the company, valued at approximately $272,688.57. This represents a 215.98 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 12.19% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Constellation Brands

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in STZ. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Constellation Brands by 13.3% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 15,534,787 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,433,188,000 after buying an additional 1,821,969 shares during the period. Capital World Investors lifted its holdings in Constellation Brands by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 9,755,602 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,155,946,000 after acquiring an additional 324,690 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its stake in Constellation Brands by 6.0% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,144,428 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,841,048,000 after acquiring an additional 402,211 shares during the period. Berkshire Hathaway Inc bought a new position in shares of Constellation Brands during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,242,976,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Constellation Brands by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,204,003 shares of the company’s stock worth $705,844,000 after purchasing an additional 63,323 shares during the period. 77.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.