Aberdeen Group plc Has $29.86 Million Position in Monster Beverage Corporation $MNST

Key Points

• Aberdeen Group plc increased its stake in Monster Beverage Corporation by 101.3%, owning approximately 509,857 shares valued at nearly $30 million as of the end of the last quarter.
• The stock rating outlook for Monster Beverage is mixed, with ratings ranging from sell to buy, and an average target price of $65.10 from analysts.
• Monster Beverage reported earnings of $0.52 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding estimates, and achieved revenue of $2.11 billion, marking an 11.1% increase year-over-year.

Aberdeen Group plc raised its stake in Monster Beverage Corporation (NASDAQ:MNST - Free Report) by 101.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 509,857 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 256,544 shares during the period. Aberdeen Group plc owned approximately 0.05% of Monster Beverage worth $29,857,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Wayfinding Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Monster Beverage during the 1st quarter worth about $29,000. Park Square Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Monster Beverage during the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Monster Beverage by 259.2% during the 4th quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC now owns 686 shares of the company's stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 495 shares during the period. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Monster Beverage by 37.1% during the 1st quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. now owns 724 shares of the company's stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 196 shares during the period. Finally, Banque Cantonale Vaudoise bought a new position in shares of Monster Beverage during the 1st quarter worth about $43,000. 72.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Monster Beverage Stock Performance

MNST traded up $0.40 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $64.39. The company had a trading volume of 4,952,222 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,180,948. The company has a market capitalization of $62.87 billion, a PE ratio of 39.99, a P/E/G ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 0.55. Monster Beverage Corporation has a twelve month low of $45.70 and a twelve month high of $66.75. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $61.65 and its 200-day simple moving average is $58.80.

Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.04. Monster Beverage had a net margin of 20.54% and a return on equity of 27.46%. The company had revenue of $2.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.08 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.41 EPS. Monster Beverage's revenue was up 11.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Monster Beverage Corporation will post 1.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Monster Beverage news, Director Mark Vidergauz sold 10,000 shares of Monster Beverage stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.73, for a total value of $637,300.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 51,191 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,262,402.43. The trade was a 16.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 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 transaction of $1,711,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 69,273 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,391,908.20. This trade represents a 28.05% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 7.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MNST has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Rothschild & Co Redburn downgraded shares of Monster Beverage from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $60.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Monster Beverage from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $70.00 to $74.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $64.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus started coverage on shares of Monster Beverage in a report on Thursday, June 12th. They set a "buy" rating and a $72.00 price target for the company. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $65.10.

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.