Diametric Capital LP Acquires New Shares in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST)

Diametric Capital LP bought a new position in shares of Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST) in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund bought 3,918 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $206,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. lifted 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 valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 203 shares during the last quarter. Spire Wealth Management bought a new position in shares of Monster Beverage in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of Monster Beverage in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Monster Beverage during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in Monster Beverage during the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Institutional investors own 72.36% of the company’s stock.

Monster Beverage Stock Performance

NASDAQ:MNST opened at $59.36 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.51, a current ratio of 3.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. Monster Beverage Co. has a twelve month low of $43.32 and a twelve month high of $59.42. The company has a fifty day moving average of $52.77 and a 200-day moving average of $52.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $57.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.05, a P/E/G ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.71.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on MNST. Citigroup increased their target price on Monster Beverage from $62.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective 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. BNP Paribas reduced their target price 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. 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. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Monster Beverage from $53.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $56.11.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Emelie Tirre sold 91,316 shares of Monster Beverage stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the insider now owns 76,201 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,220,011.38. This trade represents a 54.51 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Guy Carling sold 47,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.02, for a total transaction of $2,585,940.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 21,993 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,210,054.86. The trade was a 68.12 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 208,316 shares of company stock valued at $11,484,440. 7.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.