Baillie Gifford & Co. Grows Stock Holdings in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST)

Baillie Gifford & Co. lifted its stake in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST - Free Report) by 6.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 303,618 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 19,567 shares during the quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co.'s holdings in Monster Beverage were worth $15,958,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MNST. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 11,779,162 shares during the last quarter. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. grew its position in Monster Beverage by 250.9% in the fourth quarter. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. now owns 3,468,660 shares of the company's stock worth $178,801,000 after acquiring an additional 2,480,291 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in Monster Beverage by 1,148.0% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 2,596,888 shares of the company's stock worth $135,480,000 after acquiring an additional 2,388,798 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its position in Monster Beverage by 6.9% in 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 during the period. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP purchased a new position in Monster Beverage in the third quarter worth approximately $73,600,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.36% of the company's stock.

Monster Beverage Stock Performance

Shares of MNST traded up $1.79 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $53.00. 7,703,034 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,357,763. The business's 50-day moving average price is $50.18 and its 200 day moving average price is $50.97. 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 Co. has a twelve month low of $43.32 and a twelve month high of $61.22. The company has a market capitalization of $51.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.97, a PEG ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.74.

Insider Transactions at Monster Beverage

In other news, CFO Thomas J. Kelly sold 10,000 shares of Monster Beverage stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.65, for a total transaction of $526,500.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 74,924 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,944,748.60. The trade was a 11.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 7.80% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently weighed in on MNST. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Monster Beverage from $57.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Monster Beverage from $52.00 to $51.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Monster Beverage from $57.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Argus raised their price target on Monster Beverage from $55.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price target on Monster Beverage from $57.00 to $53.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $55.53.

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.