Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST) Shares Bought by Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C.

Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. grew its position in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST - Free Report) by 17.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 654,222 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 95,400 shares during the period. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. owned about 0.07% of Monster Beverage worth $34,386,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 203 shares during the last quarter. Spire Wealth Management bought a new position in Monster Beverage in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Monster Beverage during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new position in Monster Beverage during the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Monster Beverage during the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. 72.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Monster Beverage Price Performance

MNST stock traded down $0.18 during trading on Monday, hitting $58.49. The stock had a trading volume of 3,057,003 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,041,918. The stock has a market capitalization of $56.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.49, a PEG ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.64. Monster Beverage Co. has a twelve month low of $43.32 and a twelve month high of $60.34. The company's 50-day moving average price is $56.45 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $53.48. 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 (NASDAQ:MNST - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The company reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.40 by ($0.02). Monster Beverage had a net margin of 21.66% and a return on equity of 23.31%. The company had revenue of $1.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.80 billion. As a group, research analysts predict that Monster Beverage Co. will post 1.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on Monster Beverage from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Monster Beverage from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $68.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Monster Beverage has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $58.39.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Thomas J. Kelly sold 10,000 shares of Monster Beverage stock in a transaction on Friday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.27, for a total transaction of $552,700.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 72,273 shares in the company, valued at $3,994,528.71. This trade represents a 12.15 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Emelie Tirre sold 91,316 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were 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 approximately $4,220,011.38. This trade represents a 54.51 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 208,316 shares of company stock worth $11,484,440. 7.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Monster Beverage

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.