Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST) Shares Bought by UniSuper Management Pty Ltd

UniSuper Management Pty Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST) by 25.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 64,336 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 13,246 shares during the quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd’s holdings in Monster Beverage were worth $3,382,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. increased its position in shares of Monster Beverage by 62.5% during the 4th quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. now owns 528 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 203 shares during the period. Spire Wealth Management bought a new position in Monster Beverage during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Monster Beverage during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Monster Beverage in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Monster Beverage in the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Institutional investors own 72.36% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Guy Carling sold 47,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.02, for a total transaction of $2,585,940.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 21,993 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,210,054.86. This trade represents a 68.12 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed 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 transaction of $5,057,080.08. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 76,201 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,220,011.38. This represents a 54.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 208,316 shares of company stock worth $11,484,440 in the last three months. 7.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MNST has been the topic of a number of research reports. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Monster Beverage from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on Monster Beverage from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $59.00 target price on shares of Monster Beverage in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, BNP Paribas decreased their price target on Monster Beverage from $46.00 to $45.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $55.83.

Monster Beverage Trading Down 1.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ:MNST opened at $57.86 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $52.19 and a two-hundred day moving average of $52.38. 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 Co. has a 12-month low of $43.32 and a 12-month high of $59.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $56.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.71.

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