Capital International Sarl Purchases 38,127 Shares of Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST)

Capital International Sarl grew its position in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST - Free Report) by 15.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 281,653 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 38,127 shares during the quarter. Capital International Sarl's holdings in Monster Beverage were worth $14,804,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. boosted its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 203 shares during the period. Bleakley Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Monster Beverage by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 13,578 shares of the company's stock valued at $714,000 after buying an additional 203 shares in the last quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC raised its position in Monster Beverage by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 6,991 shares of the company's stock valued at $367,000 after buying an additional 213 shares during the period. CreativeOne Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Monster Beverage by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC now owns 11,838 shares of the company's stock worth $622,000 after acquiring an additional 217 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Level Four Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in Monster Beverage by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC now owns 4,996 shares of the company's stock worth $263,000 after acquiring an additional 220 shares during the period. 72.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Monster Beverage Stock Performance

Monster Beverage stock traded down $0.59 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $58.69. The company had a trading volume of 1,992,285 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,056,865. The company has a 50 day moving average of $55.91 and a 200-day moving average of $53.26. Monster Beverage Co. has a 52 week low of $43.32 and a 52 week high of $60.34. The company has a quick ratio of 2.51, a current ratio of 3.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The firm has a market cap of $57.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.62, a PEG ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.64.

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

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Emelie Tirre sold 91,316 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.38, for a total value of $5,057,080.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 76,201 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,220,011.38. This represents a 54.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Thomas J. Kelly sold 10,000 shares of Monster Beverage stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.27, for a total value 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. The trade was a 12.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 208,316 shares of company stock worth $11,484,440. Company insiders own 7.80% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MNST has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $59.00 price target on shares of Monster Beverage in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Monster Beverage from $68.00 to $71.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. 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 note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Monster Beverage in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $57.89.

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.