Bank of America Lowers Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) Price Target to $152.00

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) had its target price dropped by stock analysts at Bank of America from $154.00 to $152.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “underperform” rating on the stock. Bank of America‘s price objective suggests a potential upside of 5.75% from the company’s previous close.

Other equities analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Evercore set a $175.00 target price on shares of Constellation Brands and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Constellation Brands in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on shares of Constellation Brands from $154.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Constellation Brands from $155.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Constellation Brands from $160.00 to $183.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Constellation Brands currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $175.26.

Constellation Brands Price Performance

Shares of STZ stock opened at $143.73 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.55. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $152.55 and its two-hundred day moving average is $149.11. Constellation Brands has a 12 month low of $126.45 and a 12 month high of $186.05. The company has a market capitalization of $24.75 billion, a PE ratio of 14.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 1.75.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 8th. The company reported $1.90 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.71 by $0.19. Constellation Brands had a net margin of 17.29% and a return on equity of 26.18%. The company had revenue of $1.92 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.84 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.63 earnings per share. Constellation Brands’s quarterly revenue was down 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Constellation Brands will post 11.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Constellation Brands

In related news, EVP James O. Bourdeau sold 4,407 shares of Constellation Brands stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.24, for a total value of $631,258.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 9,109 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,304,773.16. The trade was a 32.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 12.45% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Constellation Brands

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Constellation Brands by 329.8% in the third quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 73,323 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,874,000 after acquiring an additional 56,263 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its stake in shares of Constellation Brands by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 867,776 shares of the company’s stock valued at $120,300,000 after acquiring an additional 49,625 shares in the last quarter. LSV Asset Management acquired a new stake in shares of Constellation Brands in the third quarter valued at $33,018,000. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Constellation Brands by 97.3% in the third quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 242,171 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,613,000 after acquiring an additional 119,400 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Portside Wealth Group LLC increased its position in shares of Constellation Brands by 455.8% in the 3rd quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC now owns 8,971 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,208,000 after purchasing an additional 7,357 shares during the last quarter. 77.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Constellation Brands Company Profile

Constellation Brands, Inc is a leading producer and marketer of beer, wine and spirits, with operations spanning production, importation, marketing and distribution. The company’s beverage portfolio includes a range of premium and mainstream wines and spirits alongside major imported beer brands; in the U.S. market Constellation is widely known for its role in bringing Mexican imports such as Corona and Modelo to American consumers. Constellation supplies retail, on‑premise and foodservice channels and supports its brands with national sales and marketing platforms and supply‑chain capabilities.

The company traces its roots to the Canandaigua Wine Company, founded by Marvin Sands in 1945, and evolved through organic growth and acquisition into a diversified beverage company.