Ironwood Investment Counsel LLC Reduces Stake in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST)

Ironwood Investment Counsel LLC lessened its stake in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST) by 2.2% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 11,218 shares of the company’s stock after selling 256 shares during the quarter. Ironwood Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Monster Beverage were worth $590,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Sustainable Insight Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Monster Beverage in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,214,000. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its position in Monster Beverage by 5.3% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 154,125 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,101,000 after purchasing an additional 7,780 shares in the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its position in Monster Beverage by 6.6% in the 3rd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 251,570 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,124,000 after purchasing an additional 15,611 shares in the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its position 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 purchasing an additional 9,496 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Miracle Mile Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Monster Beverage in the 4th quarter worth approximately $7,090,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.36% of the company’s stock.

Monster Beverage Stock Performance

NASDAQ MNST opened at $55.09 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $53.61 billion, a PE ratio of 35.31, a P/E/G ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a current ratio of 3.13, a quick ratio of 2.51 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 $61.21. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $50.80 and a 200-day simple moving average of $51.73.

Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST) last released its 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 firm had revenue of $1.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.80 billion. Monster Beverage had a net margin of 21.66% and a return on equity of 23.31%. Equities analysts anticipate that Monster Beverage Co. will post 1.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on MNST. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Monster Beverage from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Monster Beverage in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on Monster Beverage from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $59.00 target price on shares of Monster Beverage in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on Monster Beverage from $53.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Monster Beverage presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $55.83.

Insider Buying and Selling at Monster Beverage

In other Monster Beverage news, insider Emelie Tirre sold 91,316 shares of Monster Beverage stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.38, for a total value of $5,057,080.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 76,201 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,220,011.38. The trade was a 54.51 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Mark J. Hall sold 48,000 shares of Monster Beverage stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.89, for a total value of $2,634,720.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 296,846 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,293,876.94. This represents a 13.92 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 186,316 shares of company stock valued at $10,277,740 in the last three months. 7.80% of the stock is owned by corporate 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.