Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest during the month of June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 32,320,000 shares, an increase of 24.3% from the May 31st total of 26,010,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 9,550,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.4 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $63.00 to $57.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, June 17th. Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on shares of Monster Beverage in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded shares of Monster Beverage from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $66.00 to $59.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $65.00 to $60.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 14th. Finally, HSBC dropped their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $72.00 to $68.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $60.05.

Insider Activity at Monster Beverage

In other Monster Beverage news, Director Mark Vidergauz sold 15,077 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.85, for a total transaction of $781,742.45. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 68,167 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,534,458.95. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, CEO Hilton H. Schlosberg sold 42,144 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.00, for a total value of $2,233,632.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,875,558 shares in the company, valued at approximately $99,404,574. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Mark Vidergauz sold 15,077 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.85, for a total transaction of $781,742.45. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 68,167 shares in the company, valued at $3,534,458.95. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 307,221 shares of company stock worth $16,070,374 in the last ninety days. 7.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Monster Beverage

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of MNST. LRI Investments LLC acquired a new position in Monster Beverage during the 1st quarter valued at $26,000. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Monster Beverage during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Headinvest LLC acquired a new position in Monster Beverage during the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. Tortoise Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Monster Beverage by 360.0% during the 4th quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 506 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 396 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Monster Beverage in the 1st quarter valued at $37,000. 72.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Monster Beverage Stock Performance

Shares of Monster Beverage stock traded down $0.56 on Tuesday, reaching $49.34. The stock had a trading volume of 6,216,089 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,597,305. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $52.18 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $55.24. Monster Beverage has a fifty-two week low of $47.13 and a fifty-two week high of $61.22. The stock has a market cap of $51.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 0.76.

Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The company reported $0.42 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.43 by ($0.01). Monster Beverage had a return on equity of 20.74% and a net margin of 22.83%. The firm had revenue of $1.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.90 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.38 earnings per share. Monster Beverage’s quarterly revenue was up 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Monster Beverage will post 1.76 earnings per share 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.