Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST)

Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST) by 1.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 94,476 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,223 shares during the quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC’s holdings in Monster Beverage were worth $5,443,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Freedom Wealth Alliance LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Monster Beverage during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Peoples Bank KS acquired a new stake in Monster Beverage during the third quarter worth about $26,000. Resurgent Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Monster Beverage in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Ancora Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Monster Beverage during the 1st quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, Quarry LP increased its position in Monster Beverage by 276.1% during the 1st quarter. Quarry LP now owns 504 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 370 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.36% of the company’s stock.

Monster Beverage Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of MNST stock opened at $53.14 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $55.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.28, a PEG ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 0.72. Monster Beverage Co. has a 12 month low of $47.13 and a 12 month high of $61.22. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $57.19 and a 200 day moving average price of $55.49.

Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The company reported $0.38 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.38. Monster Beverage had a net margin of 22.84% and a return on equity of 20.95%. The business had revenue of $1.73 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.76 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.28 EPS. Monster Beverage’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Monster Beverage Co. will post 1.81 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Monster Beverage

In related news, Director Mark J. Hall sold 659,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.55, for a total value of $38,584,450.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 777,840 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $45,542,532. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 9.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on MNST. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $63.00 to $69.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. HSBC decreased their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $72.00 to $68.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Monster Beverage from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on Monster Beverage in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $63.11.

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.