Capital Analysts LLC Has $89,000 Stock Holdings in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST)

Capital Analysts LLC cut its stake in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST) by 18.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,546 shares of the company’s stock after selling 358 shares during the period. Capital Analysts LLC’s holdings in Monster Beverage were worth $89,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Freedom Wealth Alliance LLC acquired a new position in Monster Beverage in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Peoples Bank KS bought a new position in shares of Monster Beverage in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Resurgent Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Monster Beverage in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Ancora Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Monster Beverage in the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, Quarry LP increased its stake in shares of Monster Beverage by 276.1% in the 1st quarter. Quarry LP now owns 504 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 370 shares during the last quarter. 72.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Monster Beverage from $63.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 17th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Monster Beverage from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Monster Beverage from $63.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Redburn Atlantic initiated coverage on Monster Beverage in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price target on Monster Beverage from $64.00 to $63.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $63.11.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Mark J. Hall sold 659,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.55, for a total transaction of $38,584,450.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 777,840 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $45,542,532. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 9.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Monster Beverage Stock Performance

MNST stock opened at $53.46 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $57.24 and its 200 day simple moving average is $55.49. Monster Beverage Co. has a fifty-two week low of $47.13 and a fifty-two week high of $61.22. The company has a market cap of $55.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 0.72.

Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The company reported $0.38 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.38. Monster Beverage had a return on equity of 20.95% and a net margin of 22.84%. The business had revenue of $1.73 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.76 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.28 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Monster Beverage Co. will post 1.81 earnings per share 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.