Zacks: Brokerages Expect Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ) Will Post Earnings of $2.52 Per Share

Wall Street brokerages expect that Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ – Get Rating) will report earnings per share of $2.52 for the current fiscal quarter, Zacks Investment Research reports. Five analysts have provided estimates for Constellation Brands’ earnings. The highest EPS estimate is $2.66 and the lowest is $2.38. Constellation Brands reported earnings of $2.33 per share in the same quarter last year, which would indicate a positive year over year growth rate of 8.2%. The firm is scheduled to announce its next earnings report on Monday, January 1st.

According to Zacks, analysts expect that Constellation Brands will report full-year earnings of $11.18 per share for the current fiscal year, with EPS estimates ranging from $10.85 to $11.35. For the next year, analysts anticipate that the firm will post earnings of $13.00 per share, with EPS estimates ranging from $12.40 to $13.63. Zacks Investment Research’s earnings per share averages are an average based on a survey of analysts that cover Constellation Brands.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 7th. The company reported $2.37 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.15 by $0.22. Constellation Brands had a positive return on equity of 16.43% and a negative net margin of 0.42%. The company had revenue of $2.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.02 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.82 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis.

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Constellation Brands from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 12th. Zacks Investment Research downgraded Constellation Brands from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $260.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Friday, May 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Constellation Brands from $278.00 to $276.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 4th. Credit Suisse Group raised their price target on Constellation Brands from $278.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Constellation Brands from $300.00 to $275.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Constellation Brands has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $271.29.

In other news, EVP James O. Bourdeau sold 12,860 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $254.24, for a total value of $3,269,526.40. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,628 shares in the company, valued at $413,902.72. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO William A. Newlands sold 3,787 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $254.00, for a total value of $961,898.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 14,798 shares in the company, valued at $3,758,692. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 25,822 shares of company stock worth $6,451,256. Corporate insiders own 15.77% of the company’s stock.

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of STZ. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Constellation Brands by 2.6% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,601,280 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,902,327,000 after purchasing an additional 313,344 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. boosted its position in Constellation Brands by 1.2% during the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 11,738,986 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,703,724,000 after purchasing an additional 140,074 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors boosted its position in Constellation Brands by 4.5% during the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 9,203,388 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,119,724,000 after purchasing an additional 392,964 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its position in Constellation Brands by 48.6% during the fourth quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 2,885,267 shares of the company’s stock valued at $724,116,000 after purchasing an additional 943,872 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Constellation Brands by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,551,818 shares of the company’s stock valued at $638,398,000 after purchasing an additional 9,302 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 74.99% of the company’s stock.

Shares of STZ stock traded up $4.17 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $238.67. The stock had a trading volume of 1,197,489 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,044,145. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The firm has a market cap of $44.92 billion, a PE ratio of -1,325.94, a P/E/G ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 1.07. Constellation Brands has a one year low of $207.35 and a one year high of $261.52. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $240.97 and its 200 day simple moving average is $235.94.

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 19th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 5th were issued a dividend of $0.80 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 4th. This is a positive change from Constellation Brands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.14. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.34%. Constellation Brands’s payout ratio is currently -516.67%.

About Constellation Brands (Get Rating)

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. It provides beer primarily under the Corona Extra, Corona Premier, Corona Familiar, Corona Light, Corona Refresca, Corona Hard Seltzer, Modelo Especial, Modelo Negra, Modelo Chelada, Pacifico, and Victoria brands.

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