Zions Bancorporation N.A. Increases Position in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST)

Zions Bancorporation N.A. raised its position in shares of Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST) by 18.0% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 76,520 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 11,652 shares during the period. Zions Bancorporation N.A.’s holdings in Monster Beverage were worth $4,022,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sustainable Insight Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Monster Beverage during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,214,000. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in shares of Monster Beverage by 5.3% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 154,125 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,101,000 after acquiring an additional 7,780 shares in the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 15,611 shares during the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Monster Beverage by 6.7% in the 3rd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 151,364 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,897,000 after purchasing an additional 9,496 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Miracle Mile Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Monster Beverage during the 4th quarter valued at $7,090,000. Institutional investors own 72.36% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Monster Beverage

In other Monster Beverage news, Director Mark J. Hall sold 12,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.50, for a total value of $654,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 296,846 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,178,107. This represents a 3.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Thomas J. Kelly sold 10,000 shares of Monster Beverage stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.27, for a total transaction of $552,700.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 72,273 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,994,528.71. The trade was a 12.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 208,316 shares of company stock valued at $11,484,440. 7.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Monster Beverage Price Performance

MNST stock opened at $57.83 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 3.13 and a quick ratio of 2.51. Monster Beverage Co. has a 1 year low of $43.32 and a 1 year high of $60.13. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $51.51 and a 200 day moving average of $52.18. The company has a market cap of $56.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.07, a PEG ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.71.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Monster Beverage Company 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.