Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST) Shares Acquired by Daiwa Securities Group Inc.

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its stake in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST) by 5.8% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 160,125 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,761 shares during the quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in Monster Beverage were worth $8,416,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Sustainable Insight Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Monster Beverage in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,214,000. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its stake in Monster Beverage by 5.3% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 154,125 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,101,000 after buying an additional 7,780 shares in the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in Monster Beverage by 6.6% in the 3rd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 251,570 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,124,000 after buying an additional 15,611 shares during the last quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Monster Beverage during the 4th quarter worth approximately $7,090,000. Finally, Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC UT acquired a new position in shares of Monster Beverage during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $423,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.36% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Thomas J. Kelly sold 10,000 shares of Monster Beverage stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.65, for a total value of $526,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 74,924 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,944,748.60. This trade represents a 11.78 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Emelie Tirre sold 91,316 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.38, for a total value of $5,057,080.08. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 76,201 shares in the company, valued at $4,220,011.38. This trade represents a 54.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 7.80% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on MNST. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Monster Beverage from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on Monster Beverage from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. BNP Paribas dropped their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $46.00 to $45.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 19th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $53.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Monster Beverage currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $55.83.

Monster Beverage Price Performance

NASDAQ:MNST opened at $55.23 on Wednesday. Monster Beverage Co. has a 52 week low of $43.32 and a 52 week high of $61.22. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $50.67 and its two-hundred day moving average is $51.63. The company has a market capitalization of $53.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.40, a P/E/G ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a quick ratio of 2.51, a current ratio of 3.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13.

Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The company reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.40 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $1.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.80 billion. Monster Beverage had a net margin of 21.66% and a return on equity of 23.31%. Equities analysts expect that Monster Beverage Co. will post 1.62 EPS for the current year.

Monster Beverage Company Profile

Monster Beverage Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in development, marketing, sale, and distribution of energy drink beverages and concentrates in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Monster Energy Drinks, Strategic Brands, Alcohol Brands, and Other.