Farringdon Capital Ltd. Purchases New Holdings in Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ)

Farringdon Capital Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 5,082 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,123,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Mainstream Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Constellation Brands in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in Constellation Brands in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA bought a new position in Constellation Brands in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA acquired a new position in shares of Constellation Brands in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its holdings 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 worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares during the period. 77.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on STZ shares. Roth Capital lowered their price objective on shares of Constellation Brands from $298.00 to $284.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. StockNews.com downgraded Constellation Brands from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on Constellation Brands from $289.00 to $233.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $215.00 target price on shares of Constellation Brands in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Constellation Brands from $202.00 to $195.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $224.42.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Constellation Brands news, Director William T. Giles bought 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 17th. The shares were bought at an average price of $186.39 per share, for a total transaction of $186,390.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,463 shares in the company, valued at approximately $272,688.57. This trade represents a 215.98 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 12.19% of the company’s stock.

Constellation Brands Price Performance

Shares of STZ opened at $183.18 on Thursday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $177.69 and a 200-day moving average of $207.87. 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 company has a market capitalization of $33.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 49.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.75. Constellation Brands, Inc. has a 1 year low of $160.46 and a 1 year high of $265.70.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 9th. The company reported $2.63 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.28 by $0.35. Constellation Brands had a net margin of 6.27% and a return on equity of 26.55%. The business had revenue of $2.13 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.14 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.26 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Constellation Brands, Inc. will post 13.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Constellation Brands Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 29th will be given a dividend of $1.02 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 29th. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.23%. This is a boost from Constellation Brands’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.01. Constellation Brands’s dividend payout ratio is -800.00%.

Constellation Brands 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.