Handelsbanken Fonder AB Sells 21,311 Shares of Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB reduced its holdings in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST - Free Report) by 4.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 424,160 shares of the company's stock after selling 21,311 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB's holdings in Monster Beverage were worth $24,822,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Simplicity Wealth LLC grew its stake in Monster Beverage by 14.6% in the 1st quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC now owns 4,481 shares of the company's stock worth $262,000 after buying an additional 570 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in Monster Beverage by 2.2% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 21,433 shares of the company's stock worth $1,254,000 after acquiring an additional 460 shares in the last quarter. Tounjian Advisory Partners LLC purchased a new position in Monster Beverage in the first quarter worth $1,153,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its position in Monster Beverage by 23.1% during the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 7,400 shares of the company's stock valued at $437,000 after purchasing an additional 1,390 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Portside Wealth Group LLC raised its position in Monster Beverage by 10.0% during the first quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC now owns 17,334 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,014,000 after purchasing an additional 1,576 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 72.36% of the company's stock.

Monster Beverage Stock Up 1.0%

Shares of MNST stock traded up $0.64 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $63.23. 2,148,958 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,193,398. The firm has a market cap of $61.66 billion, a PE ratio of 40.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a current ratio of 3.13, a quick ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The company's 50 day moving average is $60.66 and its two-hundred day moving average is $55.39. Monster Beverage Co. has a 1 year low of $43.32 and a 1 year high of $64.45.

Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported $0.47 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $1.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.97 billion. Monster Beverage had a return on equity of 23.31% and a net margin of 21.66%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.42 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Monster Beverage Co. will post 1.62 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on MNST shares. UBS Group increased their price objective on Monster Beverage from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $64.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of Monster Beverage from $51.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $68.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $61.67.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Monster Beverage news, insider Guy Carling sold 47,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.02, for a total value of $2,585,940.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 21,993 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,210,054.86. This trade represents a 68.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Thomas J. Kelly sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.27, for a total transaction of $552,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 72,273 shares in the company, valued at $3,994,528.71. This trade represents a 12.15% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 92,796 shares of company stock worth $5,399,838. 8.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.