Monster Beverage Corporation $MNST Shares Bought by AIA Group Ltd

Key Points

• AIA Group increased its Monster Beverage stake by 102.1% in the third quarter, adding 105,713 shares to hold 209,250 shares valued at about $8.7 million.
• Monster reported quarterly earnings of $0.60 per share and revenue of $2.50 billion, beating analyst estimates; revenue grew 20.2% year over year.
• Analysts’ consensus rating was “Moderate Buy,” with an average price target of $71.86. The article also reported that institutional investors and hedge funds owned 72.36% of the company.

AIA Group Ltd raised its stake in Monster Beverage Corporation (NASDAQ:MNST - Free Report) by 102.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 209,250 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 105,713 shares during the period. AIA Group Ltd's holdings in Monster Beverage were worth $8,709,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Monster Beverage in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $5,770,004,000. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new stake in shares of Monster Beverage in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,195,360,000. Ninety One UK Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Monster Beverage by 89.1% in the 3rd quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 13,105,329 shares of the company's stock valued at $545,444,000 after acquiring an additional 6,175,047 shares during the last quarter. Jupiter Topco LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Monster Beverage during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $593,075,000. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new stake in shares of Monster Beverage during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $478,694,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.36% of the company's stock.

Monster Beverage Stock Down 1.7%

Monster Beverage stock opened at $47.18 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $44.73 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $43.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $92.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.68, a PEG ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.51. Monster Beverage Corporation has a 52-week low of $32.94 and a 52-week high of $50.17.

Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.02. Monster Beverage had a net margin of 23.08% and a return on equity of 26.02%. The firm had revenue of $2.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.43 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.26 EPS. Monster Beverage's quarterly revenue was up 20.2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Monster Beverage Corporation will post 1.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating on shares of Monster Beverage in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $52.00 to $52.50 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $49.50 to $49.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 26th. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $95.00 to $50.00 in a report on Sunday, August 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Monster Beverage from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Monday, October 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Monster Beverage presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $71.86.

Monster Beverage Company Profile

Monster Beverage Corporation is a global beverage company focused primarily on the development, marketing, sale and distribution of energy drinks. Its portfolio includes the flagship Monster Energy brand, along with products marketed under brands such as NOS, Full Throttle, Reign, Burn and Mother. The company offers a range of energy drinks in different flavors and formulations, including products positioned for performance, fitness and everyday consumption.

The company traces its origins to Hansen Natural Corporation, which was founded in 1935 and changed its name to Monster Beverage Corporation in 2012 as the Monster Energy brand became increasingly central to its business.

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