Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST) Shares Sold by Ninety One North America Inc.

Ninety One North America Inc. lowered its stake in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST) by 4.1% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 395,806 shares of the company’s stock after selling 16,853 shares during the quarter. Ninety One North America Inc.’s holdings in Monster Beverage were worth $20,804,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of MNST. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its position in Monster Beverage by 109.3% in the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 22,559,092 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,176,913,000 after purchasing an additional 11,779,162 shares in the last quarter. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. raised its position in Monster Beverage by 250.9% in the 4th quarter. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. now owns 3,468,660 shares of the company’s stock valued at $178,801,000 after purchasing an additional 2,480,291 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position in shares of Monster Beverage by 1,148.0% during the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 2,596,888 shares of the company’s stock worth $135,480,000 after acquiring an additional 2,388,798 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Monster Beverage by 6.9% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 33,742,390 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,760,341,000 after acquiring an additional 2,168,379 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP acquired a new stake in shares of Monster Beverage during the 3rd quarter worth about $73,600,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.36% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Monster Beverage

In other news, CFO Thomas J. Kelly sold 10,000 shares of Monster Beverage stock in a transaction on Friday, December 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.65, for a total value of $526,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 74,924 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,944,748.60. The trade was a 11.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 7.80% of the company’s stock.

Monster Beverage Stock Performance

Shares of MNST stock opened at $47.59 on Tuesday. Monster Beverage Co. has a 1 year low of $43.32 and a 1 year high of $61.22. The stock has a market cap of $46.28 billion, a PE ratio of 30.48, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.74. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $51.69 and a 200 day moving average price of $51.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 2.51 and a current ratio of 3.13.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MNST has been the topic of a number of research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Monster Beverage from $50.00 to $49.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Bank of America lifted their target price on Monster Beverage from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Argus lifted their price target on Monster Beverage from $55.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Monster Beverage from $57.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price target on Monster Beverage from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $55.42.

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.