Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST) Shares Sold by Ninety One North America Inc.

Ninety One North America Inc. lowered its position in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST - Free Report) by 4.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 395,806 shares of the company's stock after selling 16,853 shares during the quarter. Ninety One North America Inc.'s holdings in Monster Beverage were worth $20,804,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MNST. State Street Corp grew its position in shares of Monster Beverage by 6.9% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 33,742,390 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,760,341,000 after buying an additional 2,168,379 shares during the last quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P grew its holdings in shares of Monster Beverage by 4.7% during the third quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 27,142,970 shares of the company's stock worth $1,416,048,000 after purchasing an additional 1,229,789 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its position in shares of Monster Beverage by 109.3% during the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 22,559,092 shares of the company's stock worth $1,176,913,000 after purchasing an additional 11,779,162 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Monster Beverage by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 15,728,086 shares of the company's stock valued at $817,490,000 after purchasing an additional 473,418 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Monster Beverage by 18.1% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,898,127 shares of the company's stock valued at $203,365,000 after purchasing an additional 596,078 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.36% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Monster Beverage

In related news, CFO Thomas J. Kelly sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, December 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.65, for a total value of $526,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 74,924 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,944,748.60. This represents a 11.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 7.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $59.00 price target on shares of Monster Beverage in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Stifel Nicolaus increased 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. Argus lifted their price objective on shares of Monster Beverage from $55.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price target on Monster Beverage from $57.00 to $53.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock 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 issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Monster Beverage has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $55.42.

Monster Beverage Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MNST traded up $0.29 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $46.59. 3,414,201 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,411,070. The stock has a market cap of $45.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.86, a PEG ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.74. Monster Beverage Co. has a twelve month low of $43.32 and a twelve month high of $61.22. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $51.02 and a 200-day moving average price of $51.07. The company has a current ratio of 3.13, a quick ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13.

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.