Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund Has $25.37 Million Stock Position in Monster Beverage Corporation $MNST

Key Points

• Fjarde AP Fonden increased its Monster Beverage stake by 6.1% in the fourth quarter, bringing its holdings to 330,941 shares worth about $25.37 million.
• Monster Beverage reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $0.58 versus $0.53 expected and revenue of $2.32 billion, up 22.6% year over year.
• The company also approved a $500 million share repurchase program, while analysts remain broadly positive with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $89.05.

Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund boosted its position in Monster Beverage Corporation (NASDAQ:MNST - Free Report) by 6.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 330,941 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 19,100 shares during the period. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund's holdings in Monster Beverage were worth $25,373,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC lifted 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 valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 205 shares during the last quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. lifted 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 valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 415 shares during the last quarter. Triumph Capital Management bought a new position in Monster Beverage in the 3rd quarter valued at about $36,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Monster Beverage in the 3rd quarter valued at about $42,000. Finally, KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp bought a new position in Monster Beverage in the 3rd quarter valued at about $45,000. 72.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MNST has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 27th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Monster Beverage from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, March 9th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $92.00 to $90.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. TD Cowen lowered their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $88.00 to $80.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Evercore increased their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $89.05.

Monster Beverage Trading Up 1.1%

Shares of MNST opened at $89.55 on Friday. Monster Beverage Corporation has a 12 month low of $58.09 and a 12 month high of $90.44. The firm's 50 day moving average is $80.27 and its 200-day moving average is $78.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $87.58 billion, a PE ratio of 43.26, a P/E/G ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 0.54.

Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, May 8th. The company reported $0.58 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.16 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.47 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 22.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Monster Beverage Corporation will post 2.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Monster Beverage declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Friday, May 15th that permits the company to repurchase $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 0.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Monster Beverage

In other news, CFO Thomas J. Kelly sold 7,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.81, for a total transaction of $614,670.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 62,553 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,492,778.93. This trade represents a 10.06% 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 hyperlink. Also, insider Emelie Tirre sold 88,700 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.96, for a total transaction of $7,624,652.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 81,763 shares in the company, valued at $7,028,347.48. This represents a 52.03% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 159,700 shares of company stock valued at $13,730,462. 8.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Monster Beverage

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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