By Dhirendra Tripathi
Investing.com – Constellation Brands stock (NYSE:STZ) was volatile in Wednesday’s premarket trading as the company took a hit on its second-quarter earnings because of the divestiture of some of its wine and spirit brands.
The stock slipped as the company disclosed its June to August performance but recouped all the losses.
Wine and spirits shipment volume fell more than 36% while organic shipments rose nearly 6%. Beer volumes were strong and rose nearly 12%, led by Modelo Especial and Corona Extra.
The volume and the net sales the divested brands brought in during last year’s second quarter were 4.6 million (9-liter case equivalents) and $181 million, respectively.
President and Chief Executive Officer Bill Newlands said consumer demand for its big brands remained strong and was the reason behind its revised guidance.
Constellation Brands now sees its comparable basis EPS outlook at a midpoint of $10.30 compared to $10.15 previously.
Net sales in the second quarter rose 5% to $2.37 billion. EPS fell short of expectations as profit was a negligible $1.5 million compared to $512.1 million in the second quarter of last year.