Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST) Shares Sold by Swiss National Bank

Swiss National Bank lessened its holdings in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST - Free Report) by 5.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,075,400 shares of the company's stock after selling 118,300 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank owned 0.21% of Monster Beverage worth $109,083,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Sustainable Insight Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Monster Beverage during the 4th quarter worth about $1,214,000. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its holdings in shares of Monster Beverage by 5.3% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 154,125 shares of the company's stock worth $8,101,000 after buying an additional 7,780 shares in the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Monster Beverage by 6.6% during the third quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 251,570 shares of the company's stock worth $13,124,000 after buying an additional 15,611 shares in the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its stake in Monster Beverage by 6.7% in the 3rd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 151,364 shares of the company's stock worth $7,897,000 after acquiring an additional 9,496 shares during the period. Finally, Miracle Mile Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Monster Beverage in the 4th quarter worth approximately $7,090,000. 72.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Mark J. Hall sold 12,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.50, for a total transaction of $654,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 296,846 shares in the company, valued at $16,178,107. This trade represents a 3.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Thomas J. Kelly sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.27, for a total value of $552,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 72,273 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,994,528.71. This trade represents a 12.15 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 208,316 shares of company stock worth $11,484,440. 7.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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Monster Beverage Stock Up 0.0 %

Shares of MNST traded up $0.02 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $56.82. 4,353,942 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,674,185. Monster Beverage Co. has a 1-year low of $43.32 and a 1-year high of $61.03. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $50.99 and a 200-day moving average price of $51.92. The company has a current ratio of 3.13, a quick ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The company has a market cap of $55.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.42, a P/E/G ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.71.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $59.00 price objective on shares of Monster Beverage in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Monster Beverage from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. BNP Paribas dropped their price objective on shares of Monster Beverage from $46.00 to $45.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. UBS Group raised their target price 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. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Two 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 company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $55.83.

Monster Beverage 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.