Citigroup Issues Positive Forecast for Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST) Stock Price

Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST - Get Free Report) had its target price upped by equities research analysts at Citigroup from $64.00 to $70.00 in a research report issued on Monday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The brokerage presently has a "buy" rating on the stock. Citigroup's target price would indicate a potential upside of 19.84% from the company's current price.

Several other research analysts have also commented on the stock. BNP Paribas cut their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $46.00 to $45.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $53.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Monster Beverage from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Monster Beverage from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report 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 assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Monster Beverage currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $57.33.

Monster Beverage Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of MNST traded up $0.46 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $58.41. The company had a trading volume of 7,138,324 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,099,589. Monster Beverage has a 1-year low of $43.32 and a 1-year 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 business's 50-day simple moving average is $55.52 and its 200-day simple moving average is $53.14. The stock has a market cap of $56.84 billion, a PE ratio of 37.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.64.

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 for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.80 billion. Sell-side analysts forecast that Monster Beverage will post 1.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Monster Beverage

In other news, insider Emelie Tirre sold 91,316 shares of the firm's 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 76,201 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,220,011.38. This trade represents a 54.51 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Thomas J. Kelly sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,994,528.71. This represents a 12.15 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 208,316 shares of company stock worth $11,484,440 over the last quarter. 7.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Sustainable Insight Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Monster Beverage during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,214,000. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its holdings in shares of Monster Beverage by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 154,125 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,101,000 after acquiring an additional 7,780 shares in the last quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Monster Beverage during the fourth quarter worth $7,090,000. Diversified Trust Co purchased a new stake in shares of Monster Beverage during the 4th quarter worth about $733,000. Finally, Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC UT acquired a new stake in Monster Beverage in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $423,000. Institutional investors own 72.36% of the company's stock.

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.