Sapient Capital LLC Acquires 228 Shares of Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST)

Sapient Capital LLC lifted its stake in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST) by 0.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 46,082 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 228 shares during the period. Sapient Capital LLC’s holdings in Monster Beverage were worth $2,422,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. boosted its stake in Monster Beverage by 62.5% in the 4th quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. now owns 528 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 203 shares during the period. Spire Wealth Management bought a new position in shares of Monster Beverage in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new position in Monster Beverage during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in Monster Beverage during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Monster Beverage by 16,085.7% in the 3rd quarter. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. now owns 1,133 shares of the company’s stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 1,126 shares in the last quarter. 72.36% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MNST has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. BNP Paribas reduced their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $46.00 to $45.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Bank of America upped their target price on Monster Beverage from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Monster Beverage from $57.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of Monster Beverage from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC initiated coverage on shares of Monster Beverage in a research report on Friday, December 6th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Monster Beverage has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $55.42.

Monster Beverage Price Performance

Shares of Monster Beverage stock opened at $47.81 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 3.13 and a quick ratio of 2.51. Monster Beverage Co. has a one year low of $43.32 and a one year high of $61.22. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $50.85 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $51.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $46.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 0.74.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Monster Beverage news, CFO Thomas J. Kelly sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the chief financial officer now owns 74,924 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,944,748.60. This trade represents a 11.78 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 7.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.