New York State Common Retirement Fund Reduces Holdings in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST)

New York State Common Retirement Fund lowered its position in shares of Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST - Free Report) by 1.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,096,832 shares of the company's stock after selling 17,000 shares during the quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund owned 0.11% of Monster Beverage worth $57,649,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of MNST. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its position in Monster Beverage by 109.3% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 22,559,092 shares of the company's stock worth $1,176,913,000 after buying an additional 11,779,162 shares during the last quarter. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. grew its stake in shares of Monster Beverage by 250.9% during the 4th quarter. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. now owns 3,468,660 shares of the company's stock worth $178,801,000 after purchasing an additional 2,480,291 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in shares of Monster Beverage by 1,148.0% during the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 2,596,888 shares of the company's stock worth $135,480,000 after purchasing an additional 2,388,798 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of Monster Beverage by 6.9% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 33,742,390 shares of the company's stock worth $1,760,341,000 after purchasing an additional 2,168,379 shares during the period. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP acquired a new stake in Monster Beverage in the 3rd quarter valued at about $73,600,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.36% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on MNST shares. TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Monster Beverage from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $59.00 price target on shares of Monster Beverage in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Needham & Company LLC began coverage on shares of Monster Beverage in a research note on Friday, December 6th. They set a "hold" rating on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $57.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Finally, BNP Paribas decreased their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $46.00 to $45.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $55.53.

Insider Activity at Monster Beverage

In other news, CFO Thomas J. Kelly sold 10,000 shares of Monster Beverage stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 13th. The shares were 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 $3,944,748.60. This trade represents a 11.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 7.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Monster Beverage Trading Up 3.3 %

NASDAQ MNST traded up $1.71 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $52.92. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,440,085 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,223,857. Monster Beverage Co. has a 52-week low of $43.32 and a 52-week high of $61.22. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $50.18 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $50.96. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $51.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.74.

Monster Beverage Company Profile

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.