Entropy Technologies LP Makes New $5.44 Million Investment in Monster Beverage Corporation $MNST

Key Points

• Entropy Technologies LP initiated a new position in Monster Beverage during the fourth quarter, buying 70,884 shares valued at about $5.44 million.
• Monster Beverage reported solid quarterly results, with EPS of $0.58 beating estimates and revenue of $2.32 billion coming in above expectations, while sales rose 22.6% year over year.
• The company also announced a $500 million share buyback, and analysts remain moderately positive overall, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $89.35.

Entropy Technologies LP bought a new position in Monster Beverage Corporation (NASDAQ:MNST - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 70,884 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,435,000.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC grew its stake in Monster Beverage by 136.7% in the 4th quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 355 shares of the company's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 205 shares in the last quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. grew its stake in Monster Beverage by 1,338.7% in the 2nd quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 446 shares of the company's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 415 shares in the last quarter. Triumph Capital Management bought a new position in Monster Beverage in the 3rd quarter worth about $36,000. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp bought a new position in Monster Beverage in the 3rd quarter worth about $45,000. Finally, Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Monster Beverage in the 3rd quarter worth about $42,000. 72.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Emelie Tirre sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.74, for a total transaction of $857,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 71,763 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,152,959.62. This represents a 12.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Guy Carling sold 19,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.90, for a total transaction of $1,727,100.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 21,863 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,987,346.70. The trade was a 46.50% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders sold 178,700 shares of company stock worth $15,457,562. 8.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Monster Beverage Stock Performance

NASDAQ MNST opened at $92.83 on Friday. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $82.16 and its 200-day moving average price is $79.26. Monster Beverage Corporation has a 52-week low of $58.09 and a 52-week high of $93.08. The company has a market cap of $90.79 billion, a PE ratio of 44.85, a P/E/G ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 0.54.

Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, May 8th. The company reported $0.58 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.05. Monster Beverage had a net margin of 23.11% and a return on equity of 26.86%. The company had revenue of $2.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.16 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.47 earnings per share. Monster Beverage's revenue for the quarter was up 22.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Monster Beverage Corporation will post 2.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Monster Beverage announced that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Friday, May 15th that permits the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 0.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MNST has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $81.00 to $78.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 4th. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on shares of Monster Beverage from $88.00 to $80.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Morgan Stanley set a $103.00 price objective on shares of Monster Beverage and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Rothschild & Co Redburn upgraded shares of Monster Beverage from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $76.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Bank of America dropped their price objective on shares of Monster Beverage from $100.00 to $96.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Monster Beverage has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $89.35.

Monster Beverage Company Profile

Monster Beverage Corporation NASDAQ: MNST is an American beverage company best known for its Monster Energy brand of energy drinks. The company's product portfolio centers on carbonated energy beverages and a range of complementary ready-to-drink offerings, including energy coffees, hydration beverages and other flavored functional drinks. Monster markets multiple sub-brands and flavor variants to address different consumer segments and consumption occasions.

Originally organized around the Hansen's Natural line of juices and sodas, the company pivoted toward the energy drink category and formally adopted the Monster Beverage name in the early 2010s to reflect its strategic focus.

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