Geode Capital Management LLC Grows Holdings in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST)

Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST - Free Report) by 8.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 17,112,000 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,383,914 shares during the quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC owned about 1.76% of Monster Beverage worth $897,012,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Diametric Capital LP purchased a new stake in Monster Beverage in the fourth quarter worth approximately $206,000. National Wealth Management Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Monster Beverage by 16.8% during the 4th quarter. National Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 16,384 shares of the company's stock valued at $861,000 after buying an additional 2,359 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its stake in shares of Monster Beverage by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 564,737 shares of the company's stock worth $29,686,000 after buying an additional 20,815 shares during the last quarter. AIA Group Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Monster Beverage by 31.2% in the fourth quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 75,235 shares of the company's stock worth $3,954,000 after acquiring an additional 17,911 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in Monster Beverage by 21.0% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,716,603 shares of the company's stock valued at $247,905,000 after acquiring an additional 818,476 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.36% of the company's stock.

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Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on MNST shares. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Monster Beverage in a research report on Friday, February 28th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $53.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Monster Beverage from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Monster Beverage from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $56.11.

Insider Activity at Monster Beverage

In related news, Director Mark J. Hall sold 48,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.89, for a total transaction of $2,634,720.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 296,846 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,293,876.94. This represents a 13.92 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Thomas J. Kelly sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.27, for a total transaction of $552,700.00. Following the completion of 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 ownership of the stock. 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. Company insiders own 7.80% of the company's stock.

Monster Beverage Price Performance

Shares of Monster Beverage stock traded down $2.57 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $57.08. The company's stock had a trading volume of 10,386,288 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,010,486. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $53.17 and a 200-day moving average price of $52.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 3.13 and a quick ratio of 2.51. The stock has a market cap of $55.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.59, a P/E/G ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.71. Monster Beverage Co. has a one year low of $43.32 and a one year high of $61.66.

Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The company reported $0.38 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.40 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $1.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.80 billion. Monster Beverage had a return on equity of 23.31% and a net margin of 21.66%. On average, analysts predict that Monster Beverage Co. will post 1.62 EPS for the current year.

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.