JPMorgan Chase & Co. Cuts Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) Price Target to $194.00

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) had its target price lowered by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $203.00 to $194.00 in a research report released on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a neutral rating on the stock.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on Constellation Brands from $260.00 to $215.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Argus cut Constellation Brands from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on shares of Constellation Brands from $293.00 to $289.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 7th. TD Cowen reduced their target price on shares of Constellation Brands from $270.00 to $260.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Constellation Brands from $205.00 to $203.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Constellation Brands currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $231.10.

Constellation Brands Price Performance

Shares of STZ opened at $185.63 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $176.86 and its 200-day moving average is $208.70. 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 $33.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 49.90, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.75. Constellation Brands has a fifty-two week low of $160.46 and a fifty-two week high of $265.70.

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

Constellation Brands Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 29th will be issued a dividend of $1.02 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 29th. This is a positive change from Constellation Brands’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.01. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.20%. Constellation Brands’s payout ratio is -792.16%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director William T. Giles bought 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 17th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $186.39 per share, for a total transaction of $186,390.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 1,463 shares in the company, valued at $272,688.57. This trade represents a 215.98 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 12.19% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Constellation Brands

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Berkshire Hathaway Inc acquired a new position in shares of Constellation Brands during the fourth quarter valued at about $1,242,976,000. Norges Bank bought a new position in Constellation Brands during the fourth quarter valued at about $445,883,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in 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 acquiring an additional 1,821,969 shares in the last quarter. D1 Capital Partners L.P. lifted its position in shares of Constellation Brands by 186.6% in the 4th quarter. D1 Capital Partners L.P. now owns 1,527,689 shares of the company’s stock worth $337,619,000 after acquiring an additional 994,639 shares during the period. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its position in shares of Constellation Brands by 1,844.7% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 924,274 shares of the company’s stock worth $204,265,000 after acquiring an additional 876,745 shares during the period. 77.34% of the stock is currently 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.