Handelsbanken Fonder AB Decreases Stock Holdings in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB reduced its holdings in shares of Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST) by 21.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 277,767 shares of the company’s stock after selling 75,723 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Monster Beverage were worth $16,002,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. CWM LLC increased its holdings in shares of Monster Beverage by 7.9% in the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 13,220 shares of the company’s stock worth $700,000 after acquiring an additional 965 shares during the period. DAVENPORT & Co LLC grew its position in Monster Beverage by 14.0% in the 3rd quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 5,945 shares of the company’s stock valued at $315,000 after buying an additional 729 shares in the last quarter. KFG Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Monster Beverage by 15.2% in the 3rd quarter. KFG Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,412 shares of the company’s stock valued at $392,000 after buying an additional 978 shares in the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC grew its position in Monster Beverage by 101.6% in the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 18,384 shares of the company’s stock valued at $973,000 after buying an additional 9,264 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Monster Beverage by 5.4% during the 3rd quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 5,541 shares of the company’s stock valued at $293,000 after purchasing an additional 284 shares in the last quarter. 72.36% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Monster Beverage Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of MNST stock opened at $53.73 on Wednesday. Monster Beverage Co. has a 12 month low of $47.13 and a 12 month high of $61.22. The business’s 50 day moving average is $57.09 and its two-hundred day moving average is $55.60. The company has a market cap of $55.91 billion, a PE ratio of 34.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.72.

Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The company reported $0.38 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.38. Monster Beverage had a return on equity of 20.95% and a net margin of 22.84%. The company had revenue of $1.73 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.76 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.28 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Monster Beverage Co. will post 1.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Monster Beverage

In other Monster Beverage news, Director Mark J. Hall sold 659,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.55, for a total value of $38,584,450.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 777,840 shares in the company, valued at approximately $45,542,532. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 9.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on MNST. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price objective on shares of Monster Beverage from $64.00 to $63.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $62.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $63.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $61.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Monster Beverage has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $63.11.

Monster Beverage 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.