Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST) Sets New 1-Year High - What's Next?

Key Points

• Monster Beverage shares hit a new 52-week high, trading as high as $97.90 as investors pushed the stock above its previous close of $96.12.
• Recent earnings were strong, with EPS of $0.58 versus $0.53 expected and revenue of $2.32 billion, up 22.6% year over year.
• The company also announced a $500 million share buyback, while analysts remain broadly positive with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a target price of $89.35.

Monster Beverage Corporation (NASDAQ:MNST - Get Free Report)'s share price hit a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $97.90 and last traded at $97.4050, with a volume of 456049 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $96.12.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on MNST shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on Monster Beverage from $88.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on shares of Monster Beverage in a research report on Friday, June 12th. They set a "market perform" rating and a $95.00 price target for the company. Bank of America cut their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $100.00 to $96.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 10th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Monster Beverage from $87.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. Finally, UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $84.00 target price (up from $80.00) on shares of Monster Beverage in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $89.35.

Monster Beverage Stock Up 1.7%

The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $86.80 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $80.96. The stock has a market cap of $95.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 0.54.

Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 8th. The company reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.05. Monster Beverage had a net margin of 23.11% and a return on equity of 26.86%. The company had revenue of $2.32 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.16 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.47 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 22.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Monster Beverage Corporation will post 2.31 EPS for the current year.

Monster Beverage declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Friday, May 15th that allows the company to repurchase $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 0.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Mark J. Hall sold 54,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.81, for a total transaction of $4,633,740.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 299,246 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $25,678,299.26. This represents a 15.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Guy Carling sold 19,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.90, for a total value of $1,727,100.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 21,863 shares in the company, valued at $1,987,346.70. The trade was a 46.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 178,700 shares of company stock valued at $15,457,562. 8.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC grew its holdings in Monster Beverage by 136.7% in the 4th quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 355 shares of the company's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 205 shares in the last quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. grew its position in Monster Beverage by 1,338.7% in the 2nd quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 446 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 415 shares in the last quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Monster Beverage during the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Monster Beverage by 355.8% in the first quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 474 shares of the company's stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 370 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Monster Beverage during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Institutional investors own 72.36% of the company's stock.

Monster Beverage Company Profile

Monster Beverage Corporation NASDAQ: MNST is an American beverage company best known for its Monster Energy brand of energy drinks. The company's product portfolio centers on carbonated energy beverages and a range of complementary ready-to-drink offerings, including energy coffees, hydration beverages and other flavored functional drinks. Monster markets multiple sub-brands and flavor variants to address different consumer segments and consumption occasions.

Originally organized around the Hansen's Natural line of juices and sodas, the company pivoted toward the energy drink category and formally adopted the Monster Beverage name in the early 2010s to reflect its strategic focus.

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