13,159 Shares in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST) Bought by American Trust

American Trust acquired a new position in shares of Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST - Free Report) in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 13,159 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $687,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp raised its position in Monster Beverage by 6.9% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 33,742,390 shares of the company's stock worth $1,760,341,000 after acquiring an additional 2,168,379 shares in the last quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P increased its position in Monster Beverage by 4.7% during the third quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 27,142,970 shares of the company's stock worth $1,416,048,000 after buying an additional 1,229,789 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its stake in Monster Beverage by 109.3% in the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 22,559,092 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,176,913,000 after buying an additional 11,779,162 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Monster Beverage by 3.1% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 15,728,086 shares of the company's stock valued at $817,490,000 after buying an additional 473,418 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ninety One UK Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Monster Beverage by 93.9% during the 2nd quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 7,477,852 shares of the company's stock worth $373,519,000 after acquiring an additional 3,620,436 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.36% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on MNST shares. Needham & Company LLC initiated coverage on Monster Beverage in a report on Friday, December 6th. They set a "hold" rating for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $61.00 to $59.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $57.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $57.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Monster Beverage from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Monster Beverage currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $56.45.

Monster Beverage Price Performance

Shares of Monster Beverage stock traded down $0.16 during trading on Friday, reaching $52.76. 4,695,371 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,802,524. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $53.41 and its 200 day moving average price is $51.06. The company has a market cap of $51.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.82, a PEG ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 2.51 and a current ratio of 3.13. Monster Beverage Co. has a 1-year low of $43.32 and a 1-year high of $61.22.

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.