Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. Grows Stock Position in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST)

Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST) by 2.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 48,536 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,087 shares during the period. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Monster Beverage were worth $2,877,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. lifted its holdings in Monster Beverage by 5.7% during the 4th quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 3,659 shares of the company’s stock worth $211,000 after buying an additional 196 shares during the last quarter. PFG Investments LLC raised its position in shares of Monster Beverage by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. PFG Investments LLC now owns 7,761 shares of the company’s stock worth $447,000 after acquiring an additional 199 shares in the last quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co lifted its stake in Monster Beverage by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 5,908 shares of the company’s stock worth $340,000 after purchasing an additional 213 shares during the last quarter. Savant Capital LLC boosted its holdings in Monster Beverage by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 5,200 shares of the company’s stock valued at $300,000 after purchasing an additional 227 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fulton Bank N.A. boosted its holdings in Monster Beverage by 1.2% in the first quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. now owns 20,892 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,238,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.36% of the company’s stock.

Monster Beverage Stock Performance

Monster Beverage stock traded down $0.62 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $49.95. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 11,843,336 shares, compared to its average volume of 16,143,267. The firm has a market capitalization of $52.03 billion, a PE ratio of 31.42, a P/E/G ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.76. Monster Beverage Co. has a fifty-two week low of $47.13 and a fifty-two week high of $61.22. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $52.25 and its 200 day simple moving average is $55.29.

Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The company reported $0.42 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.43 by ($0.01). Monster Beverage had a net margin of 22.83% and a return on equity of 20.74%. The company had revenue of $1.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.90 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.38 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Monster Beverage Co. will post 1.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on MNST. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on shares of Monster Beverage from $63.00 to $57.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, June 17th. Redburn Atlantic began coverage on Monster Beverage in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $65.00 price objective on shares of Monster Beverage in a research note on Friday, June 14th. HSBC lowered their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $72.00 to $68.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $61.00 to $60.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Monster Beverage has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $60.10.

Insider Activity

In other Monster Beverage news, Director Mark Vidergauz sold 15,077 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.85, for a total value of $781,742.45. Following the sale, the director now owns 68,167 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,534,458.95. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, Director Mark J. Hall sold 250,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.22, for a total value of $13,055,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 532,754 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $27,820,413.88. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Mark Vidergauz sold 15,077 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.85, for a total value of $781,742.45. Following the sale, the director now owns 68,167 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,534,458.95. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 307,221 shares of company stock worth $16,070,374. Company insiders own 7.80% of the company’s stock.

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.