Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST) Shares Bought by Versant Capital Management Inc

Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST - Free Report) by 510.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,231 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 6,046 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc's holdings in Monster Beverage were worth $423,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in MNST. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its position in Monster Beverage by 5.3% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 154,125 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,101,000 after purchasing an additional 7,780 shares during the period. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC UT purchased a new position in shares of Monster Beverage during the 4th quarter valued at about $423,000. SYM FINANCIAL Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Monster Beverage in the fourth quarter worth about $557,000. Empower Advisory Group LLC grew its holdings in Monster Beverage by 6.5% during the fourth quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC now owns 1,262,180 shares of the company's stock worth $66,340,000 after acquiring an additional 77,278 shares during the period. Finally, Elevate Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Monster Beverage during the fourth quarter worth about $1,624,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.36% of the company's stock.

Monster Beverage Price Performance

MNST stock traded down $0.12 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $63.83. The company's stock had a trading volume of 5,070,141 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,792,305. The stock has a market cap of $62.25 billion, a PE ratio of 40.92, a P/E/G ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.63. The company has a current ratio of 3.13, a quick ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. Monster Beverage Co. has a fifty-two week low of $43.32 and a fifty-two week high of $64.45. The company's 50 day moving average is $59.90 and its two-hundred day moving average is $54.87.

Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST - Get Free Report) last released 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 net margin of 21.66% and a return on equity of 23.31%. The firm had revenue of $1.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.97 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.42 earnings per share. Monster Beverage's revenue was down 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Monster Beverage Co. will post 1.62 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Emelie Tirre sold 8,796 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.46, for a total transaction of $549,398.16. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 89,501 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,590,232.46. This trade represents a 8.95% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Mark J. Hall sold 48,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.89, for a total transaction of $2,634,720.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 296,846 shares in the company, valued at $16,293,876.94. The trade was a 13.92% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 217,112 shares of company stock valued at $12,033,838 over the last quarter. 8.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on the company. CICC Research raised Monster Beverage from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $56.00 to $65.00 in a report on Monday, May 12th. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $57.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Roth Mkm increased their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $50.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $60.81.

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.