AQR Capital Management LLC Acquires 217,050 Shares of Monster Beverage Corporation $MNST

Key Points

• AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Monster Beverage Corporation by 21.9%, owning over 1.2 million shares worth approximately $70 million as of the latest SEC filing.
• Recent analyst ratings for Monster Beverage show mixed reviews, with Goldman Sachs raising its target price from $67 to $72, while Redburn Atlantic downgraded its rating from "strong-buy" to "hold."
• The company's latest quarterly earnings report indicated an 11.1% year-over-year revenue increase, with earnings per share of $0.52, surpassing analysts' expectations of $0.48.

AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Monster Beverage Corporation (NASDAQ:MNST - Free Report) by 21.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,207,876 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 217,050 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC owned 0.12% of Monster Beverage worth $70,419,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of MNST. Wayfinding Financial LLC acquired a new position in Monster Beverage in the first quarter worth $29,000. Park Square Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Monster Beverage in the fourth quarter worth $36,000. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Monster Beverage by 37.1% during the first quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. now owns 724 shares of the company's stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 196 shares during the period. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise acquired a new position in shares of Monster Beverage during the first quarter valued at $43,000. Finally, Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC raised its stake in shares of Monster Beverage by 21.2% during the first quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 1,314 shares of the company's stock valued at $77,000 after purchasing an additional 230 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 72.36% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MNST has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $64.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Rothschild & Co Redburn cut shares of Monster Beverage from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $60.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Monster Beverage from $70.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Wall Street Zen cut Monster Beverage from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, September 5th. Finally, Roth Capital reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $60.00 target price (up from $56.00) on shares of Monster Beverage in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $65.10.

Monster Beverage Price Performance

NASDAQ:MNST traded down $0.57 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $62.78. The stock had a trading volume of 2,742,779 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,038,200. Monster Beverage Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $45.70 and a fifty-two week high of $66.75. The business's 50 day moving average is $61.62 and its 200 day moving average is $60.26. The stock has a market cap of $61.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.99, a PEG ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.54.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Monster Beverage

In related news, Director Mark Vidergauz sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.73, for a total transaction of $637,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 51,191 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,262,402.43. This represents a 16.34% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 7.80% of the company's stock.

Monster Beverage 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.