Mediolanum International Funds Ltd Increases Stock Holdings in Monster Beverage Corporation (NASDAQ:MNST)

Key Points

• Mediolanum International Funds Ltd increased its stake in Monster Beverage by 8% during Q1, owning 646,979 shares valued at approximately $37.4 million.
• Monster Beverage reported earnings of $0.47 EPS for the quarter, slightly outperforming expectations but showing a 2.3% revenue decline year-over-year.
• Institutional investors and hedge funds currently hold 72.36% of Monster Beverage's stock, indicating significant institutional interest in the company.

Mediolanum International Funds Ltd raised its stake in Monster Beverage Corporation (NASDAQ:MNST - Free Report) by 8.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 646,979 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 47,799 shares during the period. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd owned 0.07% of Monster Beverage worth $37,434,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Monster Beverage in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $442,642,000. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC raised its stake in Monster Beverage by 659.1% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 4,872,972 shares of the company's stock valued at $251,445,000 after purchasing an additional 4,231,063 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its stake in Monster Beverage by 5,095.6% in the 1st quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 3,063,351 shares of the company's stock valued at $179,267,000 after purchasing an additional 3,004,391 shares during the last quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Monster Beverage in the 4th quarter valued at $121,575,000. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new stake in Monster Beverage in the 4th quarter valued at $110,942,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.36% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on MNST. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Monster Beverage from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, June 13th. TD Cowen increased their price target on Monster Beverage from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Bank of America increased their price target on Monster Beverage from $57.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Monster Beverage from $60.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn downgraded Monster Beverage from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $60.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $61.91.

Monster Beverage Price Performance

MNST stock traded up $0.13 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $61.52. 1,127,206 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,992,856. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $62.04 and its 200-day moving average price is $57.45. The stock has a market cap of $59.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.45, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.59. Monster Beverage Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $43.32 and a fifty-two week high of $64.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.78 and a current ratio of 3.37.

Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.46 by $0.01. Monster Beverage had a return on equity of 27.46% and a net margin of 20.27%. The firm had revenue of $1.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.97 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.42 earnings per share. Monster Beverage's revenue was down 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Monster Beverage Corporation will post 1.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Thomas J. Kelly sold 27,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.40, for a total value of $1,711,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 69,273 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,391,908.20. The trade was a 28.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Emelie Tirre sold 8,796 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.46, for a total value of $549,398.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 89,501 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,590,232.46. This trade represents a 8.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 7.80% of the company's stock.

About Monster Beverage

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.