Constellation shares hit highest point in 20 years

NEW YORK Shares of Constellation Brands (STZ) are at their highest point in two decades on investor hopes that a $20.1 billion tie-up between beer giants Anheuser-Bush InBev (BUD) and Grupo Modelo will gain approval from U.S. regulators after the companies revised deal terms.

That would mean a lucrative side deal with Constellation, giving the wine company total control of the production of Corona and other Modelo beers in the U.S.

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The Department of Justice had sued to block the combination, saying having one company controlling nearly half of all U.S. beer sales would stifle competition.

Now AB Inbev is willing to sell Modelo's Piedras Negras brewery and give perpetual rights for Corona and the Modelo brands in the U.S. to Constellation for $2.9 billion.

Constellation's stock is up 36 percent in afternoon trading.