MetLife Investment Management LLC Sells 2,126 Shares of Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ)

MetLife Investment Management LLC lessened its position in shares of Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ) by 5.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 40,788 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,126 shares during the period. MetLife Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Constellation Brands were worth $10,511,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its holdings in shares of Constellation Brands by 5.7% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 1,335,976 shares of the company’s stock valued at $343,717,000 after purchasing an additional 72,637 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in Constellation Brands by 31.8% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,002,332 shares of the company’s stock valued at $257,865,000 after buying an additional 241,982 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners grew its position in Constellation Brands by 50.9% in the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 975,589 shares of the company’s stock valued at $265,099,000 after acquiring an additional 328,881 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in Constellation Brands by 23,184.7% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 499,689 shares of the company’s stock valued at $128,765,000 after acquiring an additional 497,543 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Manning & Napier Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Constellation Brands in the second quarter worth about $119,394,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.34% of the company’s stock.

Constellation Brands Stock Performance

Shares of Constellation Brands stock opened at $235.97 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $241.87 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $246.92. Constellation Brands, Inc. has a 1-year low of $224.76 and a 1-year high of $274.87. The company has a current ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31. The company has a market cap of $42.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 76.37, a PEG ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 0.90.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 3rd. The company reported $4.32 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.08 by $0.24. The business had revenue of $2.92 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.95 billion. Constellation Brands had a return on equity of 25.34% and a net margin of 5.29%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.70 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Constellation Brands, Inc. will post 13.57 EPS for the current year.

Constellation Brands Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 21st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 5th were issued a $1.01 dividend. This represents a $4.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.71%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 5th. Constellation Brands’s payout ratio is 130.74%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Constellation Brands

In related news, Director Robert Sands sold 119,274 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $242.37, for a total value of $28,908,439.38. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 431,729 shares in the company, valued at $104,638,157.73. This trade represents a 21.65 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO William A. Newlands sold 7,426 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $237.24, for a total transaction of $1,761,744.24. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 7,274 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,725,683.76. This trade represents a 50.52 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 189,956 shares of company stock valued at $46,058,091. Corporate insiders own 12.19% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on STZ. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Constellation Brands from $300.00 to $295.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on shares of Constellation Brands in a research note on Monday. They set a “neutral” rating and a $261.00 target price on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Constellation Brands from $307.00 to $293.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 4th. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on Constellation Brands from $310.00 to $300.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 4th. Finally, Barclays cut their price target on Constellation Brands from $309.00 to $300.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $289.16.

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.