Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund Buys Shares of 20,549 Monster Beverage Corporation (NASDAQ:MNST)

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund acquired a new stake in shares of Monster Beverage Corporation (NASDAQ:MNST - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 20,549 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,203,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of MNST. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Monster Beverage by 22.9% during the fourth quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. now owns 12,454 shares of the company's stock valued at $655,000 after purchasing an additional 2,317 shares in the last quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Monster Beverage by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 15,425 shares of the company's stock valued at $811,000 after acquiring an additional 523 shares in the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new stake in Monster Beverage in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $365,000. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its stake in Monster Beverage by 16.8% in the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 4,528 shares of the company's stock valued at $244,000 after acquiring an additional 650 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Crestwood Advisors Group LLC acquired a new stake in Monster Beverage in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $244,000. 72.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Emelie Tirre sold 8,796 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.46, for a total transaction of $549,398.16. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 89,501 shares in the company, valued at $5,590,232.46. The trade was a 8.95% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Thomas J. Kelly sold 27,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.40, for a total value of $1,711,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 69,273 shares in the company, valued at $4,391,908.20. This represents a 28.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 8.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $57.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Monster Beverage from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, June 13th. Stifel Nicolaus started coverage on shares of Monster Beverage in a research note on Thursday, June 12th. They set a "buy" rating and a $72.00 price objective for the company. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on shares of Monster Beverage from $51.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Monster Beverage from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $62.05.

Monster Beverage Stock Performance

MNST traded down $1.37 on Wednesday, reaching $62.20. The stock had a trading volume of 4,667,815 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,009,967. Monster Beverage Corporation has a 12-month low of $43.32 and a 12-month high of $64.45. The company has a current ratio of 3.37, a quick ratio of 2.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The business's 50-day moving average price is $61.80 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $56.00. The company has a market cap of $60.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.60.

Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported $0.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.46 by $0.01. Monster Beverage had a net margin of 20.27% and a return on equity of 27.46%. The firm had revenue of $1.85 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.97 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.42 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Monster Beverage Corporation will post 1.62 earnings per share for the current year.

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.