Vontobel Holding Ltd. Acquires 13,157 Shares of Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST)

Vontobel Holding Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST) by 32.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 53,442 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 13,157 shares during the period. Vontobel Holding Ltd.’s holdings in Monster Beverage were worth $3,079,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MNST. Freedom Wealth Alliance LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Monster Beverage during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Peoples Bank KS bought a new stake in Monster Beverage during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Resurgent Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Monster Beverage during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Ancora Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Monster Beverage in the 1st quarter worth $27,000. Finally, Quarry LP increased its position in shares of Monster Beverage by 276.1% in the first quarter. Quarry LP now owns 504 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 370 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.36% of the company’s stock.

Monster Beverage Stock Down 1.5 %

MNST opened at $53.46 on Friday. Monster Beverage Co. has a twelve month low of $47.13 and a twelve month high of $61.22. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $57.24 and a 200-day moving average price of $55.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $55.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.49, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 0.72.

Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The company reported $0.38 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.38. Monster Beverage had a return on equity of 20.95% and a net margin of 22.84%. The firm had revenue of $1.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.76 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.28 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 14.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Monster Beverage Co. will post 1.81 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on MNST. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Monster Beverage from $61.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on Monster Beverage from $64.00 to $63.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 26th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Monster Beverage from $57.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Monster Beverage from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic began coverage on shares of Monster Beverage in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Monster Beverage currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $63.11.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Mark J. Hall sold 659,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the director now owns 777,840 shares in the company, valued at approximately $45,542,532. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 9.40% 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.